The Young and the Arrestless

December 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

Notwithstanding the explosion of youth criminality, the court has largely continued to treat juvenile offenders in a more lenient and paternalistic fashion than adults.

Devallis Rutledge

Keeping up with Case Law

November 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

Much of what I learned in basic academy in the late 1960s is no longer good law. If I were still operating on the basis of 40-year-old understandings, I wouldn't be very effective.

Devallis Rutledge

Entrapment

October 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

"The first duties of the officers of the law are to prevent, not to punish crime. It is not their duty to incite to and create crime for the sole purpose of prosecuting and punishing it."

Devallis Rutledge

No Explanation Required

September 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

"There is nothing in the Constitution which prevents a policeman from addressing questions to anyone on the streets."

—Supreme Court, (U.S. v. Mendenhall)

Devallis Rutledge

Pinpointing the Right to Counsel

August 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

Ever since the 1964 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Massiah v. U.S., it has been the rule that any statements about a crime that were deliberately elicited from the suspect by a government official or undercover agent, after the Sixth Amendment right to counsel had “attached” and been asserted, could not be used at trial to prove guilt.

Devallis Rutledge

Civil Liability and Protected Speech

July 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

You must act with considerable discipline and restraint when loudmouths try to demean and upset you with offensive language and gestures.

Devallis Rutledge

Fourth Amendment Supremacy

June 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

Evidence discovered during a search incident to an arrest supported by PC is not suppressible in the majority of state courts.

Devallis Rutledge

Topics of Conversation

May 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

Crooks often commit multiple crimes. When you make an arrest and get ready to begin interrogating, you will normally administer the four-part Miranda warning. But if you want to ask questions about more than one crime you think your suspect committed, do you have to inform him of all possible topics of discussion? The short answer is, "No."

Devallis Rutledge

The Crime-Charging Gap

April 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

Just because a prosecutor declines to file or a grand jury declines to indict does not necessarily mean there has been a bad arrest. Proving guilt in a criminal trial requires the prosecutor to meet a much higher burden than the arresting officers, by proving the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

Devallis Rutledge

How to Tell When You Need a Search Warrant

March 2008 - Features

The general rule-of-thumb is to try to get a warrant whenever possible. On the other hand, if you can seize evidence without engaging in a search, you don't need either a warrant or any exception.

Devallis Rutledge

The Bruton Rule

March 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

In many cases, two or more crooks commit crimes together. When you catch them, you'll generally do your best to get admissible confessions from them. Arresting multiple suspects can actually give you better chances to obtain statements.

Devallis Rutledge

Residential Entry After Outdoors Arrest

February 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

There are four ways to make a lawful entry into a private home. Notice that "entry incident to outdoors arrest" is not on the list of lawful ways to get inside a residence. In three separate cases, the U.S. Supreme Court has held such entries to be unconstitutional.

Devallis Rutledge

Unmixing Mixed-Up Concepts

January 2008 - Departments: Point of Law

How many times have you heard the expression "PC for the stop"? How about the application of Miranda once the suspect is "not free to leave?" These are common examples of improper mixing that can undercut the case against a guilty perpetrator.

Devallis Rutledge

Full Disclosure

December 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

Two of the basic questions you have when you write an investigative report are "What to put in?" and "What to leave out?" Although these are legitimate questions, it's important to understand that certain things you might consider leaving out should actually be included.

Devallis Rutledge

Setting Up Talks

November 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

One of the most troublesome legal issues in law enforcement is the question of when an officer may resume discussions with a suspect after some kind of Miranda "history" has occurred. The answer is, "It all depends."

Devallis Rutledge

How to Justify Officer Safety Searches

October 2007 - Features

On average, 60,000 officers are assaulted on the job every year. That's an average of 164 per day. The risk level you face on the job makes it important not only to resist complacency and to follow prudent tactics, but also to understand how to ensure that your interactions with suspects are constitutionally justifiable, so that you are never forced to choose between being safe and being sued.

Devallis Rutledge

Reflex Fire

October 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

It's not uncommon to hear or read about officer-involved shootings where multiple officers emptied their loads into the suspect and anything within 10 feet of him. Asked about why they opened fire, bystander officers may reply, "When another officer started shooting, I just reflexively started shooting, too."

Devallis Rutledge

Seizing and Searching Passengers

September 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

In the 2007 decision in Brendlin v. California, the U.S. Supreme Court added yet another to a series of Fourth Amendment opinions on the subject of vehicle searches and seizures involving passengers, rather than drivers. Several issues that might arise from police interactions with passengers of vehicles have been addressed by the court.

Devallis Rutledge

Reasonable Execution of Search Warrants

August 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

A search conducted under a valid search warrant can still violate the Fourth Amendment if it is conducted in an unreasonable manner. "It is incumbent upon the officer executing a search warrant to ensure the search is lawfully authorized and lawfully conducted." (Groh v. Ramirez)

Devallis Rutledge

Federal Liability for Vehicle Pursuits

July 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

Any officer who's been involved in a vehicle pursuit that resulted in property damage, bodily injury, or death should be concerned with at least three levels of liability. Departmental discipline may be imposed if the pursuit violates agency policy. Tort liability may be imposed through a lawsuit filed in state court. And plaintiffs may file a federal civil rights lawsuit seeking damages.

Devallis Rutledge

The "Good Faith" Doctrine

June 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

The U.S. Supreme Court has said that "Because many situations which confront officers in the course of executing their duties are more or less ambiguous, room must be allowed for some mistakes on their part. But the mistakes must be those of reasonable men, acting on facts leading sensibly to their conclusions of probability." (Brinegar v. U.S.)

Devallis Rutledge

Vehicle Impounding

June 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

If the court finds that the Constitution was violated by a vehicle impound, the existence of an authorizing statute or policy may not be enough to save you and your agency from civil liability and suppression of resulting evidence.

Devallis Rutledge

The Lawful Use of Deception

May 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

It might be nice if law enforcement officers never had to lie to a criminal suspect in order to solve a crime. In fact, some police advisors do suggest to officers that they should never mislead a suspect. Unfortunately, the reality is otherwise.

Devallis Rutledge

Search Warrant Exceptions

May 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

Unless you are searching under authority of a judicial warrant, you are presumed to be violating the Fourth Amendment. To rebut this presumption and avoid both civil liability and suppression of evidence, you have the burden of establishing that your warrantless search was justified under one or more of the recognized exceptions.

Devallis Rutledge

Plain Sense Seizures

April 2007 - Departments: Point of Law

If a criminal exposes evidence in ways that can be detected by use of the personal senses, there is no Fourth Amendment “search” involved in discovering the presence of such items. Assuming no previous unlawful search, the seizure of the items is presumptively reasonable if there is probable cause to associate them with criminal activity.

Devallis Rutledge