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Isaac Evans drove the wrong way down a one-way Phoenix street in front of a police station in January of 1991. He was stopped by a Phoenix police officer, who asked for Evans's driver's license. Evans told the officer that it had been suspended, and the officer verified this on the computer terminal in his patrol car. That database also showed an outstanding warrant for Evans's arrest on a misdeme…
Evans's case hinged on the Fourth Amendment, which states that: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. The…
There is, however, the "good faith" exception to the exclusionary rule, the legality of which was affirmed in a 1984 U.S. Supreme Court decision, the United States v. Leon. It allowed for evidence to be admitted in the prosecutor's case against the respondent if it is shown that the law enforcement personnel were acting on good faith--in other words, that they had reasonable cause. With this line …
The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the Arizona Court of Appeals decision, ruling in favor of the state of Arizona and allowing the evidence to be admitted into the case against Evans. Chief Justice Rehnquist wrote the Court's opinion. It noted that the exclusionary rule had been designed to curb police misconduct, and found no police misconduct in this situation. Secondly, the Court's decision took i…
The Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable search and seizure is seen by many historians as perhaps the most important item in the Bill of Rights. They theorize that the abuse of power by agents of the British crown in this area was probably the impetus for the American Revolution itself. The exclusionary rule was a relatively recent development in constitutional law, and the law-enfor…
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