Court ruling knocks off a constitutional right
Tennessean
by staff
06/20/06
There's a knock on the door, followed by the announcement, 'Open up! Police!' Then comes the anticipation of someone answering the door. That scene is ingrained in the consciousness of Americans familiar with the standards of police work, because it represents the proper way to conduct a search warrant. But what if the cops never knocked? What if they just announced themselves, took a breath, then moved in? That's a case the Supreme Court considered last week, and the court failed miserably, siding with police who had violated a man's constitutional rights by the way they entered his home. The court ruled 5-4 that evidence seized in a search conducted by not even knocking may be used in court. That decision flies in the face of the Fourth Amendment protection from unreasonable searches. Over the years, courts have embraced the 'knock-and-announce' procedure as the way to conduct a constitutional search. The 'knock-and-announce' rule is what makes the search reasonable...
http://tinyurl.com/kua8d
Informant: Thomas L. Knapp
by staff
06/20/06
There's a knock on the door, followed by the announcement, 'Open up! Police!' Then comes the anticipation of someone answering the door. That scene is ingrained in the consciousness of Americans familiar with the standards of police work, because it represents the proper way to conduct a search warrant. But what if the cops never knocked? What if they just announced themselves, took a breath, then moved in? That's a case the Supreme Court considered last week, and the court failed miserably, siding with police who had violated a man's constitutional rights by the way they entered his home. The court ruled 5-4 that evidence seized in a search conducted by not even knocking may be used in court. That decision flies in the face of the Fourth Amendment protection from unreasonable searches. Over the years, courts have embraced the 'knock-and-announce' procedure as the way to conduct a constitutional search. The 'knock-and-announce' rule is what makes the search reasonable...
http://tinyurl.com/kua8d
Informant: Thomas L. Knapp
rudkla - 21. Jun, 14:23
