Chapter 5: Probable Cause and Arrests Flashcards
2 Requirements for an arrest to be reasonable under the 4th Amendment.
If an arrest is reasonable under 4th Amendment.
- Arrest is based on probable cause.
- p.c. can be based on direct observations / hearsay - The arrest must be conducted in reasonable fashion.
Arrest
when a person is lawfully taken into custody by law enforcement.
Formal arrest
when an officer informs you “you are under arrest.”
De Facto Arrest
When an officer doesn’t directly tell you “you are under arrest,” but the totality of circumstances would lead a reasonable person to conclude that you are under arrest.
i.e. being restrained, handcuffed, taken to police station against will.
Probable Cause
When the officer relies on facts within his knowledge and trustworthy information that would lead person of reasonable caution to believe a crime has been / is being committed (and that the person who was arrested committed the crime).
Probable cause is based on “_______________” not “_______________.” It’s just above ______________ _____________ and right below _____________ a ____________ __________.
probabilities; certainties; reasonable suspicion; beyond; reasonable doubt
Think of probable cause as ‘there is at least a ______% likelihood that a certain suspect committed the crime.’
51
Sometimes police officers will evaluate / investigate evidence _____________ using the ___ senses: __________, ________, _________, _________, ___________,
directly; 5; sight; sound; smell; touch; taste
“Collective Knowledge” Theory
Applied by a judge when officers work together, collectively, as a team during investigation.
Says that probable cause can (in conglomeration) be based on collective knowledge of each of the officers in an investigation.
______________ is second-hand information relied on by officers. These statements are often made by___________, ___________, ____________, or ___________ __________ themselves. ____________ are actually (likely) involved in the criminal activity. These statements are based on the ____________ of the person’s ____________ of what happened/occurred at the crime scene. The _______________ of these statements are unknown, but police don’t have a _____________ in deciding whether or not they rely on these statements. If they don’t, it would seem like a failure to fulfill their investigative duties. __________ strictly ___________ hearsay statements in court.
Hearsay; victims; eye-witnesses; informants; police officers; informants; frequency; telling; accuracy; choice; Judges; limit
3 Rules Probable Cause follows in using second-hand information to investigate crime:
1) Citizen Informants:
- Statements by victims, and eyewitness are presumed to reliable trustworthy and constitute probable cause.
- Victims / eyewitnesses are usually interviewed right after the crime–after they have been victimized–and have no reason to lie about what occurred.
2) Police officers:
- Statements by police are accepted as reliable and constitute probable cause.
3) Informants:
- Informants are not presumed to be reliable, and only initiate probable cause in limited circumstances.
- Oftentimes involved in crime.
- Could have self-interested motifs, hoping their cooperation would lead to a plea bargain for them.
Requiring _____________ to testify in court would likely ______________ them from providing information to law enforcement since they don’t get to keep their ______________.
informants; discourage; anonymity
Informant Privilege
informant not required to testify (to maintain anonymity)
Aguilar-Spinelli Test
Two prong test
1) Veracity Prong
- Police must show that info from the informant relied upon has been accurate in the past.
- Another indicator of reliability is that the informant is willing to expose himself to criminal liability. (oftentimes trying to get a pleas bargain / deal w/ officers for crimes he’s committed).
2) Basis-of-Knowledge-Prong
- Police must figure out where an information obtained his evidence.
- (Was the informant an eyewitness, or did he engage in criminal activity himself?)
Bonus: Police officer must independently corroborate an informant’s tip that is vague.
The Aguilar Spinelli Test was eventually _____________ in favor of the ____________ of ______________ test, a decision made in 1983 in Illinois v. Gates. Ultimately, the ___________ ___________ test was too _______________, and not every case where an officer relies on an ___________’s tip can __________ fit the standard. It simply became to technical.
abandoned; Totality; circumstances; Aguilar-Spinelli; demanding; informant’s; easily
Reasonableness and Arrests:
Warrants: there are __________ requirements for issuance of warrants.
Arrest and Warrants: some _____________ have to be made w/ a __________.
Arrests in Home: All ___________ in home have to be made with a _____________.
Exigent Circumstances: There is some ____________ ___________s exception to the requirement of needing a warrant to make arrest in the _________.
Arrests and force: Police are allowed to exercise __________ ___________ in making arrests.
Misdemeanors, citations, and arrests: States and localities may authorize _____________ for ______________.
strict
arrest; warrant
arrests; warrant;
exigent circumstances; home
reasonable force
arrests; misdemeanors
Arrest Warrant
Warrant issued by judge or magistrate, to arrest an individual suspected of crime.
Establishes probable cause to arrest individual(s).
Law enforcement must appear before a ___________, _____________ magistrate or judge, and ___________ their standard for ____________ ___________. The Supreme Court held that careful ______________ of magistrates is to be ____________ to a quick assessment of activity by ______________. An individual’s liberties can be best protected by having law enforcement ___________ before a judge, and be required to present ___________ that there is probable cause.
detached; neutral; satisfy; probable cause; deliberation; preferred; police; stand; evidence
Affidavit
Sworn statement, under oath, by police officer stating facts that constitute probable cause to believe someone committed a crime.
Affiant
Person (police officer) who swears to a facts set forth in affidavit.
In U.S. v. Watson, (1976), the Supreme Court affirmed that warrantless arrest are ____________ under the _____th Amendment of the United States Constitution. The Court argued that requiring ______ arrests be conducted under a __________ would ___________ the enforcement of law. They held that warrantless arrest for __________ in __________ were consistent with ___________ law, and the state _________ and state _______________ of different states and therefore reasonable under the federal ________________.
reasonable; 4th; ALL; warrant; slow; felonies; public; common; statutes; constitutions; constitution.
The United States took a turn in principle (regarding warrantless arrest) in the case of ______________. In Atwater v. Lago Vista, (1978), the Supreme Court answered the question of whether or not police can conduct _____________ arrest for a _______________. The Atwater ruling established the “___-____________” standard.
misdemeanors; warrantless; misdemeanor; In-presence
“In-Presence” Standard
If an officer conducts a warrantless arrest for a misdemeanor, then the officer must be present when the crime occurs.
This standard has been interpreted such that in evaluating the crime, officers have to employ 5 senses of sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste.
Arrest in the Home: Doorways
Many courts have held that if a defendant opens their door, and is ____________ at their __________, this counts as an arrest inside the home, and requires a _____________. However, if the police remain outside of the _____________ place when conducting arrest, then the arrest is said to be __________, and therefore no need for a ____________.
arrested; doorway; warrant; dwelling; public; warrant
Arrest in the Home: Common Hallways
Police are allowed to conduct _____________ arrests in the common hallways outside one’s ______________.
warrantless; apartment
Arrest in the Home: Hotel
Police need a warrant to apprehend individuals in a __________ or ___________ room that the individual rented.
hotel; motel
In Payton v. New York, (1980), taken in conglomeration with the case of Obbie Riddick, the Supreme Court decided that ____________ entry into the home to execute ____________ or conduct _____________ is unreasonable per the 4th Amendment.
Even if an officer has _________ __________ to believe that the ___________ of _____________ can be found in a certain place, they still need a ____________.
Payton was suspected of murdering a gas station manager. Officers knocked on the apartment door of Payton, and there was no ___________. Assistance was called to _____ open the door, and police recovered a .30 caliber bullet shell. Payton was arrested and indicted for murder.
Riddick was suspected of being perpetrator of 2 armed robberies. Officers found his ____________ in 1974. Police ________ on the door to Riddick’s home, his son answered the door, and police went in and seized Riddick who was only wearing his ____________. They also searched through drawers in his room and found ____________ and __________ paraphernalia. Riddick was arrested and charged with illegal _____________ possession.
The Supreme Court ruled that an ____________ is the ___________ of a person. They ruled that the seizure of ____________ and ____________ aren’t different in degree but in _______. But they are both the same because each require ___________ into the home, among the greatest privacies of life. Entry into the home to ___________ or _________ property implicate the same __________ of constitutional protection.
warrantless; arrest; search
probable cause; fruit; crime; warrant
response; pry
address; knocked; underpants; narcotics; narcotics; narcotics
arrest; seizure; persons; evidence; kind; entry; arrest; seize; level
Rule Established in Payton v. New York, (1980)
1) Absent exigent circumstances [need for prompt police action],
2) warrantless entry into the home is unlawful,
3) even if there is probable cause to believe the evidence of criminal activity can be found within [the home]
Exigent Circumstances
Circumstances creating an urgent need for prompt police action.
Exigent Circumstances ultimately, is based on whether officers have ____________ _____________ to believe crime has been committed and that they must act ______________ and do not have _________ to secure a ______________. Police must act on the ___________ of the ____________.
probable cause; immediately; time; warrant; spur; moment
In Steagald v. US, (1981), officers showed up to Gary Steagald’s home w/ an __________ warrant for Lyons, a fugitive wanted for drug charges. The police entered the home, found Lyons and cocaine in the home, arrested Lyons, and seized the cocaine. Steagald moved to suppress the _____________ found in the home because the officers didn’t have a right to execute an arrest warrant in the home of a “____________ _____________.”
The Supreme Court ruled in Steagald’s favor, holding that a ______________ warrant, NOT an __________ warrant, is sufficient to enter a __________ _________’s home and seize evidence.
Court reasoned that _________ and ___________ warrants both require ___________ ___________ but have two entirely different objectives. An __________ warrant is meant to protect people from unreasonable ____________. A ___________ warrant is meant to protect their property from unreasonable _____________. The officers knew they planned to search Steagald’s home 2 days in advance to find Lyons, so that was more than enough to time to obtain the proper _____________ warrant.
arrest; evidence; “third party.”
search; arrest; third party’s
search; arrest; probable cause; arrest; seizure; search; intrusion; search
In Welsh v. Wisconsin, (1984), the Supreme Court decided that police do _________ have the right to make a ______________ entry into one’s home for a minor ________ traffic offense (based on what the state’s statutes consider minor offenses).
NOT; warrantless; civil
Up until the 14th Century, police were allowed to employ _________ ___________ to _________ guilty of crime. Felons were thought to have given up their right __________, and agents of law enforcement were merely the one’s ____________ the punishment that was already due to them.
deadly force; felons; life; administering
On the other hand, police could _____ use __________ ____________ against _______________. It was thought to be unfair to punish someone with a _____________ consequence who doesn’t pose a substantial ____________ to the community, and only committed a ___________ offense. _____________ were usually punished with __ yr imprisonment and a ________.
NOT; deadly force; misdemeanants; fatal; threat; minor; misdemeanants; 1; fine
misdemeanants
one who commits a misdemeanor (minor offense, punishable by less than a year in prison).
fleeing-felon rule
Allows police to use deadly force against felons who are fleeing (in flight) from police.
Tennessee v. Garner, (1985), was the first case to challenge the __________-__________ rule. In a 6-3 majority, the Court decided the Tennessee statute which authorized the use of _________ ____________ against suspects who __________, was invalid insofar as (to the extent that) it allowed for the use of ___________ _____________ in ALL cases where a suspected criminal is fleeing, even cases where the felon is _____________. The court ruled that the capture of the suspect is not so vital as to outweigh the suspect’s ____________ in ____________. They ruled it would be better for the suspect to ____________ than ______.
fleeing-felon; deadly force; fled; deadly; unarmed; interest; life; escape; die
The United Supreme Court has decided that the use of excessive _____________ ____________ and ___________ _____________ are to be determined under the ______________ clause of the __th Amendment, to decide whether the use of either force was _______________ reasonable.
nondeadly force; deadly force; reasonableness; 4; objectively.
3 Relevant (Objective) Factors in deciding whether non-deadly / deadly force was excessive:
1) Seriousness of offense.
2) Immediacy of threat posed by suspect.
3) Suspect trying to resist arrest / escape.
Graham v. Connor, (1989) (i.e. the person w/ the insulin reaction, who needed sugar, where police used overly-excessive force only to figure out he wasn’t guilty of the suspected crime (robbery)) decided that determining the ______________ of __________ exercised by officers under ______________ _____________ which takes into account “_________ __________” intentions, and absence of “__________” or “_____________” behavior intended to harm the suspect is erroneous, because these are _____________ considerations surrounding the ______________ of the officer. Force exercised in good faith does not automatically mean it’s _____________ or that it’s not objectively ________________. A standard like that has NO bearing on _________________ reasonable standard created under the 4th Amendment (1. Seriousness of offense, 2. immediacy of threat by suspect, and 3. did suspect try to evade / resist arrest?)
excessiveness; force; substantive law; good faith; malicious; sadistic; subjective; intentions; reasonable; unreasonable; objectively
Citation
no custody for the person who agrees to show identification and appear in court at a later date.
Many believe it is far more reasonable to issue a ________________ to someone who committed a ____________ offense, rather than conduct an ____________ on them. It doesn’t really make sense to subject a ________________ to the _____________ and _______________ associated with an arrest. Some have argued that allowing _____________ for _________ crimes would target _______________.
citation; minor; arrest; misdemeanant; indignity; inconvenience; arrests; minor; minorities
In Illinois v. Caballes, (2005) the Supreme Court made clear that _______- ____________ during a traffic stop is reasonable under the ___th Amendment as long as the time it takes to conduct the ____________ doesn’t prolong the stop beyond the _____________ purpose of the stop, i.e. issuing a ________ or ____________ to the person being stopped. The search can’t ________ time to the _________.
dog-sniffing; 4th; sniff; primary; warning; citation; add; stop
In Missouri v. McNeely, (2013), the Supreme Court decided an officer needs a _______________ to draw __________ in suspected ______________ DUI. This is because of how _____________ it is to take someone’s ______________ which is one of the suspects’ “__________” protected under the 4th Amendment.
warrant; blood; misdemeanor; intrusive; blood; effects
