CrimP 2 - 4A Arrests Flashcards
FOURTH AMENDMENT—ARRESTS AND OTHER DETENTIONS
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SEIZURE
The Fourth Amendment provides that people should be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.
Any exercise of control by a government agent over a person or thing is a seizure.
Governmental seizures of persons, including arrests, are seizures within the scope of the Fourth Amendment and so must be reasonable.
What constitutes a seizure:
A seizure occurs when, under the totality of circumances, a Reasonable person would not feel free to decline officer’s requests or terminate the encounter.
What constitutes an Arrest:
An arrest occurs when Police take a person into custody against their will for purposes of criminal prosecution or interrogation.
Arrests: Require what?
PC required for arrest?
Any arrest must be based on probable cause.
a. Probable Cause Requirement: An arrest must be based on probable cause—that is, trustworthy facts or knowledge sufficient for a reasonable person to believe that the suspect has committed or is committing a crime for which arrest is authorized by law. Probable cause is based on the totality of the circumstances.
PC for arrest
Trustworthy facts or knowledge sufficient for a reasonable person to believe that the suspect has committed or is committing a crime for which arrest is authorized by law
Arrests:
Are warrants required?
Public arrests
Home arrests
Warrant not required for arrests in public place.
Warrant required for arrests in home.
b. Warrant Generally Not Required Except for Home Arrests
A warrant generally is not required before arresting a person in a public place.
However, police generally must have a warrant to effect a nonemergency arrest of a person in their home.
The officers executing the warrant may enter the suspect’s home only if there is reason to believe the suspect is within it.
Station house detentions
Police must have PC for arrest to bring a suspect to the station for questioning or fingerprinting against the persons will.
Effect of invalid/unlawful arrest
An unlawful arrest, by itself, has No impact on any subsequent criminal prosecution.
Investigatory Detentions - Terry stops ***
The police have the authority to briefly detain a person even if they lack probable cause to arrest.
TERRY STOP: Police can BRIEFLY detain person for investigatory purposes if reasonable suspicion of criminal activity supported by articulable facts (not merely a hunch).
- If the police have a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity or involvement in a completed crime, supported by articulable facts (that is, not merely a hunch), they may detain a person for investigative purposes.
TERY FRISK: If the police have RS that the person is armed and dangerous, they may FRISK them for weapons.
- If the police have reasonable suspicion that the detainee is armed and dangerous, they may frisk the detainee for weapons.
Reasonable Suspicion
More than vague, less than PC. Depends on totality of circumstances.
Reasonable suspicion is more than just vague suspicion but is less than probable cause. Whether the police have reasonable suspicion depends on the totality of the circumstances.
RS based on Informations
When RS is based on informants tip, there must be some indicia of reliability for it to be sufficient.
Does not have to have PREDICTIVE infromation, but helpful.
Terry Stops: Duration and scope
Police must act in diligent and reasonable manner in confirming or dispelling suspicions.
Investigatory stops are not subject to a specific time limit.
The police may ask the detained person to identify themself (that is, state their name) and generally may arrest the detainee for failure to comply with such a request.
The detention will also turn into an arrest if during the detention other probable cause for arrest arises.
Property seizures
Brief property seizures are valid if based on reasonably suspicion.
Automobile stops
Generally police may stop a car if they have reasonable suspicion to believe law was violated.
AUTOMOBILE STOPS: Traffic stops and police dogs
During routine traffic stops, a dog SNIFF is NOT a search, so long as police do not extend the stop beyond the normal time needed to issue a ticket or conduct normal inquireies.
If a dog ALRTS to the presence of drugs, that can form the basis for PROBABLE CAUSE for a search.
BUT: The police Without PROBABLE CAUSE CANNOT use a drug sniffing dog outside the home of a suspected drug dealer.
Automobile Stops: Police Officer’s mistake of law
A cop’s mistake of law does NOT invalidate a seizure as long as the mistake was REASONABLE.
Automobile Stops: Seizure of ALL occupants
An automobile stop constitures a seizure not only of the driver, but of any passengers as well.
Thus, passengers have STANDING to raise a wrongful stop as a reaosn to exclude evidence found during the stop.
Automobile Stops: Informational Checkpoints and roadblocks
If police set up a roadblock for purposes OTHER THAN seeking inccriminating information about the drivers stopped, the roadblock will be constitutional.
If SPECIAL LAW ENFORCEMENT NEEDS are involved, the SC allows cops to set up roadblocks to stop cars without individualized supicion that the driver violated some law.
To be VALID, the roadblock must:
- Stop cars based on some neutral, articulable standard (CANNOT just pick and choose cars), AND
- Must be designed to serve purposes closely related to a particular problem pertaining to automobiles and their mobility
Automobile Stops: DUI checkpoint?
Roadblock to search cars for drugs?
A roadblock to test for drunk drivers is valid because of the perva- siveness of the drunk driving problem, but a roadblock to search cars for illegal drugs is not valid because the purpose of such a checkpoint is only to detect evidence of ordinary criminal wrongdo- ing.
Automobile Stops: May Police order occupants out?
After lawfully stopping, in the interest of officer safety, cops may force occupants out.
If cop reasonably believes detainees are armed, officer may frisk the occupants AND Search the passenger compartments for weapons, even after occupants are out.
Automobile Stops: Pretextual stops
If police have PC to believe a driver violated a traffic law, they can stop the car, EVEN if their ulterior motive is to investage a crime for which they lack sufficient cause to make a stop.
Detention to Obtain a Warrant
If the police have probable cause to believe that a suspect has hidden drugs in their home, they may, for a reasonable time, prevent the suspect from going into the home unaccompanied so that they can prevent the suspect from destroying the drugs while they obtain a search warrant.
Occupants of the Premises
A valid warrant to search for contraband allows the police to detain occupants of the premises during a proper search.
Grand Jury Appearance
Seizure of a person (by subpoena) for a grand jury appearance is not within the Fourth Amendment’s protection.
Deadly Force
There is a Fourth Amendment “seizure” when a police officer uses deadly force to apprehend a suspect.
An officer may not use deadly force unless it is reasonable to do so under the circumstances (where the suspect poses a danger to their own life or the lives of others).
