Pick 2 out of the 3 following search-and-seizure situations and note whether you think the evidence seized would be excluded in a court of law. In addition, try to note cases that apply to each circumstance. (You are only required to choose two situations, but you may answer more if you choose to.)
*******Use concrete examples/details and avoid generalities. Address all questions.*********
Police Officer Adams observed an automobile driving the wrong way on a one-way street. When the officer tried to stop the automobile, the driver fled, resulting in a high-speed chase. The chase ended when the driver’s car crashed into a telephone pole. Concerned that the car might ignite from a gas leak, Officer Adams pulled the unconscious woman from the car. After he had pulled the woman a safe distance from the car, he went back into the car to locate her purse for identification, at which time he found a knife covered in blood on the front seat. It was later discovered that the knife was used in the murder of another police officer. Should the knife be excluded? What court case(s) justify your decision?
While off duty and at a party, Officer Boone was asked by the homeowner to get some ice from his basement. Since the ice machine was not immediately apparent, Officer Boone opened two doors, and behind door two were six marijuana plants. Officer Boone arrested the homeowner. Would you exclude the marijuana plants? What court case(s) justify your decision?
Defendant Lewis was suspected of selling stolen property from his dorm room. An undercover campus police officer knocked on Lewis’ door, and when Lewis answered, the officer asked for an affordable radar detector. In response, Defendant Lewis said that he just got two new ones last night. While in the room, the officer noticed various other items that she suspected were stolen. She bought one of the radar detectors and then used it to convince a judge to issue a search warrant of the room. Among the items confiscated in the search with the warrant were four radar detectors, three television sets, two air-conditioning units, and 1,500 compact discs. Should this evidence be excluded? What court case(s) justify your decision?
