Tag: Point of Law: Page 10

Patrol

Hotel/Motel Registry Checks

A supreme court decision might have the adverse effect of making it easier for motels conspiring with criminals to thwart police investigations.

August 21, 2015

Patrol

Entries and Civil Liability

Fortunately, the Supreme Court recently overturned two federal court rulings that had exposed officers to potential liability in cases involving warrantless entries.

July 7, 2015

Patrol

Unlawfully Prolonged Traffic Stop

Is it OK under the Fourth Amendment to turn a traffic stop into a criminal investigation? Of course it is, provided the justification for the additional investigation is developed during the reasonable duration of the traffic stop—not after.

June 18, 2015

Patrol

Admonitions and Waivers

Most of your communications with criminal suspects are "unscripted" dialogue. But in certain situations it can be very important that you say the right words, at the right time, to avoid creating problems for yourself, your agency, and your prosecutor.

May 4, 2015

Patrol

Search Warrant Basics

There are good reasons why officers need to become more comfortable with writing search warrant applications, and to delay non-emergency searches until warrants can be obtained.

April 28, 2015

Patrol

Getting Your Case Filed

Although the prosecutor's decision to decline to pursue a prosecution could be for a variety of reasons, there are steps you can take to ensure that a rejection is not based on your police work on the case.

March 5, 2015

Patrol

Mistake of Law: To Err Is Human

In a series of cases, the court has upheld searches and seizures made by officers who were mistaken in their understanding of the facts they confronted, or as to the law to be applied.

February 27, 2015

Technology

Legal Issues With Body Cams

Recent events have accelerated law enforcement's timetable for adopting wearable audio-video recording devices. But using this technology has legal ramifications that have to be understood by criminal justice stakeholders.

January 26, 2015

Patrol

Understanding Fourth Amendment "Standing"

A defendant cannot suppress evidence if he cannot show that his own legitimate rights were violated in the way it was obtained.

December 3, 2014

Patrol

The 5 Biggest Search-and-Seizure Myths

Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court made the Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule binding on the states in the 1961 decision in Mapp v. Ohio, thousands of published decisions from state and federal courts have applied the exclusionary rule to thousands of searches and seizures. It's no wonder the 50-year tidal wave of exclusionary decisions has left confusion and misunderstanding in its wake. Here are five areas of the law that seem to suffer the most in translation.

November 11, 2014

Patrol

Point of Law: Vehicle Pursuits and Deadly Force

For the third time in 10 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has given us guidance on the kinds of circumstances that may justify the use of deadly force to stop a dangerous driver.

September 4, 2014

Patrol

Why You Should Double Check for Accuracy

Although law enforcement officers are given considerable leeway for reasonable mistakes, you don't get much slack for unreasonable mistakes that result from hasty reactions to bad information that comes from your own official sources.

August 7, 2014