A police officer is on patrol in a neighborhood. She sees a…
A police officer is on patrol in a neighborhood. She sees a motorist drive by that she suspects was involved in a crime that had been reported to police earlier in the evening. The motorist commits a minor traffic violation. The police officer pulls over the motorist. The police officer testifies that her actual motivation for pulling over the motorist was because she believed she might find evidence of the earlier crime. Was the search of the motorist constitutional?
Read DetailsMaxim is a farmer who grows crops on a series of fields on h…
Maxim is a farmer who grows crops on a series of fields on his farm. The fields are far away from the house where Maxim resides. Several of the fields have limited access because they are surrounded by fences, but other fields are unfenced. One day, the police drive along a dirt road and come along the fields. The police walk through the fields, both fenced and unfenced, and discover a large number of marijuana plants. The police do not have a warrant. The entries into, and inspection of, which of the fields constitute a “search” within the meaning of the 14th Amendment?
Read DetailsRenata is walking through a city park at dusk when a police…
Renata is walking through a city park at dusk when a police officer on patrol comes across her. The police officer stops Renata. Can the police officer lawfully require Renata to identify herself and arrest Renata if she fails to comply with that order?
Read DetailsBartholomew resides in a house with a large yard surrounded…
Bartholomew resides in a house with a large yard surrounded by a fence. The yard is immediately adjacent to the house. Parts of the yard are not visible from the street. The police suspect that Bartholomew is growing marijuana in the yard. In order to inspect the yard, the police use an aircraft to fly over the house and yard. The police do not have a warrant. Is the visual inspection by aircraft a “search” under the Fourth Amendment?
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