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Type: Article

Section: Point of Law

Surprise, Shock, and Speed

Diversionary devices have had many names, not all of them popular. But that's mostly due to the public's misperception of what they are and how they are used.

February 28, 2007

Search Warrant Exceptions

The requirement of the Fourth Amendment is that all searches be "reasonable." The Supreme Court has ruled that warrantless searches are presumed to be unreasonable, "subject only to a few specifically established and well-delineated exceptions."

January 31, 2007

Bringing ’em Back Alive

There was a time not too long ago when the only non-lethal weapon available to American law enforcement officers was a baton. Here is our guide to less-lethal patrol weapons now on the market.

December 31, 2006

Northern Injustice

It took three trials—two resulted in hung juries— over five years before prosecutors managed to get a verdict in the case.

October 31, 2006

David Griffith New 5

ID Procedures and the Right to Counsel

There are several ways a crime victim or other eyewitness might have an opportunity to identify a stranger-perpetrator of a crime before being called as a witness in court. (If the perpetrator is an acquaintance, the ID will not generally be an issue.)

October 31, 2006

30th Anniversary: High-Impact Decisions

Every U.S. Supreme Court decision on the criminal justice provisions of the Constitution (especially the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments) is important to law enforcement, but some have a more significant day-to-day impact on police work than others.

September 30, 2006

Parole and Probation Searches

After pussyfooting around the issue for years, the U.S. Supreme Court has finally come to a decision on what justifies a probation or parole search.

August 31, 2006

Knock Notice After Hudson

Never mind the headlines and the editorials proclaiming that the Supreme Court did away with the knock-and-announce requirement for execution of search warrants in the recent case of Hudson v. Michigan. The court did no such thing.

July 31, 2006

Entry to Quell a Disturbance

Any law enforcement entry into private premises, including a residence, or an office or other commercial area that is not open to the public, is governed by the Fourth Amendment. Officers may make lawful entry only in four ways, and the consequences of unlawful entry can include suppression of evidence and civil liability.

June 30, 2006

Anticipatory Search Warrants

Can you get a search warrant in advance that will authorize you to enter and search for the suspected items once the designated time arrives or the triggering event occurs? According to a 2006 U.S. Supreme Court decision, the answer is, yes.

May 31, 2006

Keeping the Peace During Civil Disputes

Although it’s tempting to take sides on certain calls, doing so can have major repercussions for you and your agency.

March 31, 2006

Seizing Evidence in Plain View

The Fourth Amendment governs three forms of activity: searches (intrusions into privacy), seizures of the person (detentions and arrests), and seizures of property. If these acts are not authorized by judicial warrant, they must come within one or more of the court-created exceptions for warrantless search and seizure (Katz v. U.S.). One of these exceptions is called “plain view.”

February 28, 2006

Foreign Correspondence

Statistics from countries that have tried it reveal that gun control is no answer for violent crime.

January 31, 2006

Training Aids

The proper equipment can make your training safer and more effective.

December 31, 2005

Davis Rules

In a fairly common scenario, you obtain a valid Miranda waiver from a suspect in custody and begin interrogation. Part-way through your questioning, the suspect begins to feel uneasy about going forward and says something about remaining silent or talking to a lawyer.

December 31, 2005

By the Numbers

The police in my area made national news when a local dog owner and repeat offender of the leash law tricked them into issuing a citation for a $50 fine to his dog. The dog owner made a mockery of the situation by requesting a hearing on behalf of the dog, and reporters found that very amusing.

December 31, 2005

Do You Swear?

Brushing up on courtroom testimony.

December 31, 2005

Taking Evidence from the Suspect

A criminal suspect has a Fifth Amendment right not to be compelled to incriminate himself, so he cannot be forced to make a statement. But if he is lawfully in custody, he can be compelled to submit to particular tests or to provide exemplars of his physical attributes. Under some circumstances, he can also be compelled to behave in certain ways (“modeling”) in order to assist in identification.

November 30, 2005

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