Cja 364 Probable Cause Research Paper
Probable Cause Article
Jason Martin
CJA/364
October 13, 2014
A. Zimmer
Probable Cause Article
We have already gone over the exclusionary rules associated with unwarranted searches and seizures, now we need to look at warranted searches and seizures. The Fourth Amendment requires that no warrants be issued unless based on probable cause by a sworn Affirmation, this applies to all warrants whether they are for search or seizure. In order to understand the concept behind warrants, we must also understand probable cause. The Supreme Court has defined probable cause as more than mere suspicion. The facts an officer is acting upon must be enough to convince the average person that the suspect committed or is committing the offense being investigated. (Worrall, 2012) In the academy they stressed this as less than beyond a reasonable doubt, but more than a hunch; which leaves a large area in between.
In New York State a controversial law was passed after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Massachusetts. This law is referred to as the SAFE Act, and it has led to many questions regarding the enforcement of portions of the law. One …show more content…
The most obvious exception, that most people see, are searches of vehicles on the side of the road. These searches can be conducted based on either voluntary consent from the operator or by probable cause developed through plain sight items in the vehicle or a conversation the officer has with the operator. Another exception is known as a stop and frisk, commonly called a Terry stop, where an officer stops an individual and may conduct a quick search to ensure the person has no weapons. These searches cannot be conducted just because an officer wants to check the individual; even a simple pat down search needs to be backed by
Jason Martin
CJA/364
October 13, 2014
A. Zimmer
Probable Cause Article
We have already gone over the exclusionary rules associated with unwarranted searches and seizures, now we need to look at warranted searches and seizures. The Fourth Amendment requires that no warrants be issued unless based on probable cause by a sworn Affirmation, this applies to all warrants whether they are for search or seizure. In order to understand the concept behind warrants, we must also understand probable cause. The Supreme Court has defined probable cause as more than mere suspicion. The facts an officer is acting upon must be enough to convince the average person that the suspect committed or is committing the offense being investigated. (Worrall, 2012) In the academy they stressed this as less than beyond a reasonable doubt, but more than a hunch; which leaves a large area in between.
In New York State a controversial law was passed after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Massachusetts. This law is referred to as the SAFE Act, and it has led to many questions regarding the enforcement of portions of the law. One …show more content…
The most obvious exception, that most people see, are searches of vehicles on the side of the road. These searches can be conducted based on either voluntary consent from the operator or by probable cause developed through plain sight items in the vehicle or a conversation the officer has with the operator. Another exception is known as a stop and frisk, commonly called a Terry stop, where an officer stops an individual and may conduct a quick search to ensure the person has no weapons. These searches cannot be conducted just because an officer wants to check the individual; even a simple pat down search needs to be backed by