Search & Seizure Law: 2024 Ed.

SEARCH AND SEIZURE LAW
With Coverage of Arrests, Confessions, and Privacy Expectations

1. CONSTITUTIONAL CRIMINAL PROCEDURE

   • 1.1. Constitutional Analysis
     • 1.1.1. The Fourth Amendment
     • 1.1.2. The Fifth Amendment
     • 1.1.3. The Sixth Amendment
   • 1.2. New Federalism
   • 1.3. Interpreting a State Constitution
     • 1.3.1. Rights of Crime Victims
   • 1.4. The Exclusionary Rule
     • 1.4.1. General aspects
     • 1.4.2. “Fruit of the Poisonous Tree” Doctrine
     • 1.4.3. The “Attenuation” Doctrine
     • 1.4.4. The good-faith exception
     • 1.4.5. The Independent Source Doctrine
     • 1.4.6. The Inevitable Discovery Doctrine

2. INVESTIGATIVE DETENTIONS

   • 2.1. Levels of encounters
   • 2.2. Consensual encounters; the “mere inquiry”
     • 2.2.1. Working the buses
   • 2.3. Investigative detentions; “stop and frisk”
     • 2.3.1. Reasonable articulable suspicion for a stop
       • 2.3.1.1. The scope of an investigative detention
       • 2.3.1.2. Stop and identify
       • 2.3.1.3. The least intrusive means test
       • 2.3.1.4. Transporting suspects
       • 2.3.1.5. Handcuffing suspects
     • 2.3.2. Reasonable suspicion for a protective frisk
       • 2.3.2.1. Anonymous tip—“man with a gun” call
     • 2.3.3. The scope of the protective frisk
     • 2.3.4. Plain touch
     • 2.3.5. Various factors to consider
       • 2.3.5.1. A suspect’s prior criminal record
       • 2.3.5.2. An officer’s training and experience
       • 2.3.5.3. Knowledge of a recent crime in the area
       • 2.3.5.4. High-crime/high drug-trafficking areas
       • 2.3.5.5. Time period
       • 2.3.5.6. Wanted flyers
       • 2.3.5.7. Evasive conduct, furtive gestures, etc.
       • 2.3.5.8. Flight
       • 2.3.5.9. Tips provided by informants
       • 2.3.5.10. Drug courier profiles
   • 2.3.6. Mere inquiries, investigative stops and Miranda
   • 2.3.7. Investigative detentions of vehicles; the motor vehicle or traffic stop
     • 2.3.7.1. General aspects
     • 2.3.7.2. A tip of dangerous or erratic driving
     • 2.3.7.3. Observed violations
       • 2.3.7.3.1. The “owner is the driver” assumption
     • 2.3.7.4. Permissible activities at, and length of, a traffic stop
     • 2.3.7.5. The VIN of a motor vehicle
     • 2.3.7.6. Roadblocks and checkpoints
     • 2.3.7.7. Removing drivers or passengers from the motor vehicle
     • 2.3.7.8. A “Terry frisk” of the vehicle’s passenger compartment
     • 2.3.7.9. Pretextual stops
   • 2.3.8. Investigative detentions of property
     • 2.3.8.1. A trained “sniff” by a “canine cannabis connoisseur”

3. THE LAW OF ARREST

   • 3.1. General aspects
   • 3.2. The objective standard
   • 3.3. Factors to consider
   • 3.4. The probable cause requirement
   • 3.5. Involuntary transportation to the police station
   • 3.6. An officer’s training, experience, and expertise
   • 3.7. The “fellow officer” / “collective knowledge” rule
   • 3.8. Other factors to consider
     • 3.8.1. High crime areas
     • 3.8.2. Identification of suspect
     • 3.8.3. Informants
     • 3.8.4. Flight, nervousness, or evasive maneuvers
   • 3.9. Arrest with a warrant
     • 3.9.1. Contents of the arrest warrant
       • 3.9.1.1. Media ride-alongs
     • 3.9.2. Delay in making an arrest
     • 3.9.3. Protective sweeps
   • 3.10. Arrest without a warrant
   • 3.11. Entry of a dwelling to effect an arrest
     • 3.11.1. The requirement of exigent circumstances in addition to probable cause
     • 3.11.2. Exigent circumstances further explored
       • 3.11.2.1. Community caretaking and emergency aid
       • 3.11.2.2. Hot pursuit
     • 3.11.3. Consent
   • 3.11.4. Payton violations and the limits of the exclusionary rule
     • 3.11.4.1. Minor offenses
   • 3.12. Entry of the home of a third party
   • 3.13. The knock-and-announce rule
   • 3.14. Use of force to effect an arrest
   • 3.15. Procedures after arrest
     • 3.15.1. Authority to obtain fingerprints and photographs

4. SEARCH & SEIZURE

   • 4.1. The Warrant Requirement
     • 4.1.1. Preliminary
     • 4.1.2. The search warrant affidavit
     • 4.1.3. Issuance of the warrant
     • 4.1.4. The particularity requirement
       • 4.1.4.1. The places to be searched
       • 4.1.4.2. The things to be seized
         • 4.1.4.2.1. Contraband goods
     • 4.1.5. Judicial requirements
       • 4.1.5.1. The neutral and detached magistrate
       • 4.1.5.2. Oath or affirmation
     • 4.1.6. The probable cause requirement
       • 4.1.6.1. The “totality of the circumstances” test
       • 4.1.6.2. Staleness of probable cause
       • 4.1.6.3. The “four corners” test
     • 4.1.7. Sources of information / informants
       • 4.1.7.1. Criminal informants
       • 4.1.7.2. Citizen informants
       • 4.1.7.3. Fellow officers
       • 4.1.7.4. Anonymous tips
     • 4.1.8. Search warrant execution
       • 4.1.8.1. Service
       • 4.1.8.2. Entry and the “knock and announce” rule
         • 4.1.8.2.1. The time between the announcement and the entry
     • 4.1.9. Inventory and return
       • 4.1.9.1. Police need not inform owner of the procedures for property return
     • 4.1.10. Anticipatory warrants
     • 4.1.11. Scope of the search
       • 4.1.11.1. The authority to detain occupants
       • 4.1.11.2. Media ride-alongs
   • 4.2. Exceptions to the warrant requirement (warrantless searches)
     • 4.2.1. Search incident to a lawful arrest
       • 4.2.1.1. The person of the arrestee and the area within his immediate control
         • 4.2.1.1.1. Strip searches
         • 4.2.1.1.2. Fingerprints, photographs, and DNA
         • 4.2.1.1.3. The search must be substantially contemporaneous with the arrest
           • 4.2.1.1.3.1. Items carried by the arrestee
         • 4.2.1.1.4. Minor offenses
         • 4.2.1.1.5. Search incident to citation rejected
         • 4.2.1.1.6. Blood and breath alcohol testing
         • 4.2.1.1.7. Cell phones
           • 4.2.1.1.7.1. Cell phone location data
       • 4.2.1.2. Motor vehicle searches incident to arrest
     • 4.2.2. Exigent circumstances
       • 4.2.2.1. Destruction or removal of evidence
         • 4.2.2.1.1. Crime scenes
           • 4.2.2.1.1.1. Protective, victim/suspect fan-out searches
         • 4.2.2.1.2. Evidence about to be destroyed
         • 4.2.2.1.3. Narcotics and other dangerous drugs
         • 4.2.2.1.4. Pending the arrival of a search warrant
           • 4.2.2.1.4.1. When the knock and announce prompts the sound of evidence destruction
         • 4.2.2.1.5. Blood alcohol
       • 4.2.2.2. Safety of the officer or others
         • 4.2.2.2.1. When there is an imminent threat of violence
           • 4.2.2.2.1.1. Burglary in progress
       • 4.2.2.3. Hot/fresh pursuit
       • 4.2.2.4. Emergency aid
         • 4.2.2.4.1. Firefighters
       • 4.2.2.5. Community caretaking
         • 4.2.2.5.1. Protective custody
     • 4.2.3. Consent searches
       • 4.2.3.1. General aspects
       • 4.2.3.2. The right to refuse
       • 4.2.3.3. Determining whether the consent was voluntary or coerced
       • 4.2.3.4. Express or implied consent
       • 4.2.3.5. Common authority
         • 4.2.3.5.1. Parental consent
       • 4.2.3.6. Co-occupants
       • 4.2.3.7. Consent provided by a minor
       • 4.2.3.8. Traffic stops
       • 4.2.3.9. Scope of the consent
     • 4.2.4. Automobile exception
       • 4.2.4.1. General aspects
       • 4.2.4.2. Closed packages in an automobile
       • 4.2.4.3. Passengers’ belongings
       • 4.2.4.4. Delayed searches
       • 4.2.4.5. K-9 searches
       • 4.2.4.6. Odor of contraband
       • 4.2.4.7. Motor homes
       • 4.2.4.8. GPS tracking
       • 4.2.4.9. Driveway searches
   • 4.2.5. Impound and inventory searches
     • 4.2.5.1. General aspects
     • 4.2.5.2. Pre-existing standardized procedures
     • 4.2.5.3. Booking procedures

5. PRIVACY EXPECTATIONS

   • 5.1. Preliminary
     • 5.1.1. Listening devices
     • 5.1.2. Presence of the media during warrant execution
     • 5.1.3. Thermal imaging devices
       • 5.1.3.1. Use of surveillance cameras
     • 5.1.4. Use of a flashlight
     • 5.1.5. Drug field test not a search
     • 5.1.6. Use of a drug-sniffing dog on a homeowner’s porch
     • 5.1.7. The VIN of an automobile
     • 5.1.8. Reasonable expectations of privacy and a person’s physical appearance
       • 5.1.8.1. Facial characteristics
       • 5.1.8.2. Fingerprints
       • 5.1.8.3. The physical characteristics of a person’s voice
       • 5.1.8.4. Handwriting
       • 5.1.8.5. Soles of a person’s shoes
     • 5.1.9. Arrest records
     • 5.1.10. The passenger area of a commercial bus
     • 5.1.11. Rental cars
     • 5.1.12. Parking lots
     • 5.1.13. Hospital rooms
     • 5.1.14. Bank records
   • 5.2. Open fields
     • 5.2.1. The “curtilage”
       • 5.2.1.1. A home’s driveway
     • 5.2.2. The “knock and talk”
   • 5.3. Plain view
     • 5.3.1. General aspects
     • 5.3.2. Use of a flashlight
     • 5.3.3. Aerial observations
   • 5.4. Abandonment
     • 5.4.1. General aspects
       • 5.4.1.1. Throwing or discarding property
     • 5.4.2. Abandoned structures
     • 5.4.3. Curbside garbage
     • 5.4.4. Denying ownership
       • 5.4.4.1. Silence in response to a police inquiry about ownership

6. ADMINISTRATIVE AND REGULATORY SEARCHES

   • 6.1. Administrative searches
     • 6.1.1. The “balancing of interests” analysis
     • 6.1.2. The “special needs” analysis
       • 6.1.2.1. School searches
         • 6.1.2.1.1. An unreasonable strip search
       • 6.1.2.2. Government employers
       • 6.1.2.3. Probation and parole
       • 6.1.2.4. Drug testing
         • 6.1.2.4.1. Hotel/motel registries
   • 6.2. Regulatory searches
   • 6.3. Fire Scenes
     • 6.3.1. Preliminary considerations
     • 6.3.2. The warrant requirement and fire scene entries
       • 6.3.2.1. To determine cause and origin
       • 6.3.2.2. To search for evidence of arson
   • 6.4. Border Searches

7. PRIVATE SEARCHES

   • 7.1. General aspects
   • 7.2. The target of the exclusionary rule

8. CONFESSION LAW

   • 8.1. Introduction
     • 8.1.1. The Fifth Amendment
     • 8.1.2. The Miranda Requirements
     • 8.1.3. The Miranda Formula
   • 8.2. Interviews and Confessions
     • 8.2.1. Preliminary issues
       • 8.2.1.1. Uncorroborated confessions and the “corpus delicti” rule
       • 8.2.1.2. Electronic recordings of custodial interrogations
       • 8.2.1.3. Volunteered statements
     • 8.2.2. What constitutes custody?
       • 8.2.2.1. General aspects
       • 8.2.2.2. A motor vehicle stop is not Miranda custody
       • 8.2.2.3. Stationhouse questioning
       • 8.2.2.4. Hospital settings
       • 8.2.2.5. When the suspect is a juvenile, age should be taken into account
       • 8.2.2.6. Prison custody is not Miranda custody
     • 8.2.3. What constitutes interrogation?
       • 8.2.3.1. General aspects
       • 8.2.3.2. The Fifth Amendment setting
         • 8.2.3.2.1. Providing information about the crime
         • 8.2.3.2.2. Consent searches
       • 8.2.3.3. The Sixth Amendment setting
         • 8.2.3.3.1. The “Christian Burial” case
         • 8.2.3.3.2. After indictment
         • 8.2.3.3.3. When the right to counsel attaches
   • 8.3. Miranda
     • 8.3.1. Administration; when to advise
       • 8.3.1.1. When the administration of the Miranda warnings has become stale
     • 8.3.1.2. When a suspect becomes the “focus” or “target” of an investigation
     • 8.3.1.3. On the scene questioning
     • 8.3.2. Miranda and motor vehicle offenses
       • 8.3.2.1. The routine “booking question” exception to Miranda
       • 8.3.2.2. Physical sobriety tests
     • 8.3.3. The public safety exception
     • 8.3.4. The impeachment exception
     • 8.3.5. Physical fruits of an unwarned statement

8.4. Events surrounding the interrogation process

• 8.4.1. Invocation of rights
  • 8.4.1.1. The right to remain silent
    • 8.4.1.1.1. Booking questions
    • 8.4.1.1.2. A suspect’s silence and impeachment
  • 8.4.1.2. The right to counsel
    • 8.4.1.2.1. A request for counsel during non-custodial questioning
    • 8.4.1.2.2. Conditional requests
    • 8.4.1.2.3. When the accused initiates further conversation
    • 8.4.1.2.4. Offenses unrelated to the subject of the initial interrogation
    • 8.4.1.2.5. The Shatzer 14-day rule
• 8.4.2. Waiver of rights
  • 8.4.2.1. General aspects
    • 8.4.2.1.1. Voluntariness—a two-step analysis
    • 8.4.2.1.2. A free and unconstrained choice; inducements to confess
      • 8.4.2.1.2.1. A knowing and intelligent choice
    • 8.4.2.1.3. Juveniles
    • 8.4.2.1.4. Intoxicated suspects
    • 8.4.2.1.5. Lying to a suspect
    • 8.4.2.1.6. An initial failure to warn
    • 8.4.2.1.7. Deliberate “end runs” around Miranda
  • 8.4.2.2. Illegal detention
  • 8.4.2.3. Outside influences

9. FOREIGN NATIONALS
   • 9.1. Notification of Rights
   • 9.2. Waiver of Rights
   • 9.3. Diplomatic Immunity