NCJ Number
122962
Journal
American Criminal Law Review Volume: 26 Issue: 4 Dated: (Spring 1989) Pages: 1389-1396
Date Published
1989
Length
8 pages
Annotation
The interpretation and enforcement of the Fourth Amendment's provisions regarding warrants and the reasonableness of a search and seizure must rest on contemporary analyses and values, because neither the language, the structure, nor the history of the Fourth Amendment makes clear how it should be interpreted in today's legal context.
Abstract
The Fourth Amendment has two basic clauses. One focuses on the reasonableness of a search and seizure; the other, on warrants. One view is that the two clauses are distinct, while another view is that the second clause helps explain the first. However, which interpretation is correct is unclear. In addition, law enforcement today differs sharply from the period in which the Constitution's framers lived. During that period, no organized police forces existed that were even remotely like those of today. In contrast, today's law enforcement officials seem to have broad inherent authority to search and seize. These powers are not generally subject to either statutory or regulatory control, and common-law limitations are generally ill-defined and ineffective. Nevertheless, the lack of guidance from the Constitution's framers means that we must draw our own conclusions regarding how to interpret and enforce the Fourth Amendment. 33 footnotes.