Case Law Flashcards
Graham vs Connor
a person claims that police used excessive force during an investigatory stop, arrest, or other type of seizure, the claim must be reviewed using the “objective reasonableness” standard under the Fourth Amendment, not under a standard of substantive due process.
Pennsylvania vs Mimms
The order to get out of the car, issued after the respondent was lawfully detained, was reasonable and thus permissible under the Fourth Amendment. The State’s proffered justification for such order — the officer’s safety — is both legitimate and weighty, and the intrusion into respondent’s personal liberty occasioned by the order, being, at most, a mere inconvenience, cannot prevail when balanced against legitimate concerns for the officer’s safety.
Maryland vs Wilson
In the 1997 case Maryland v. Wilson, the Supreme Court ruled that police officers may order passengers out of a lawfully stopped vehicle, even without reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, to ensure officer safety
Carroll vs US
The motor vehicle exception allows officers to search a vehicle without a search warrant if they have probable cause to believe that evidence or contraband is in the vehicle. The exception is based on the idea that there is a lower expectation of privacy in motor vehicles because of the regulations under which they operate. Also, the ease of mobility creates an inherent exigency to prevent the removal of evidence and contraband.
Brown vs Texas
In the 1979 Supreme Court case Brown v. Texas, the court ruled that a police stop for the sole purpose of obtaining identification is unlawful unless the officers have a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, violating the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable seizures.
US vs Mendenhall
United States Supreme Court case that determined “seizure” occurs when an officer uses displays of authority to detain a person.
Arizona v. Gant
police can only search a vehicle incident to a recent occupant’s arrest if the arrestee is within reaching distance of the vehicle or if there’s reason to believe evidence of the arrest offense might be found.
