cannabisnews.com: What Evidence Do Police Need for a Search? What Evidence Do Police Need for a Search? Posted by FoM on February 29, 2000 at 10:26:35 PT By Warren Richey, Staff Writer of The CSM Source: Christian Science Monitor Police in Miami receive an anonymous tip identifying three teenagers standing at a bus stop outside a pawn shop. The tipster says that one boy, wearing a plaid shirt, is carrying a concealed gun.Police officers arrive at the bus stop within six minutes, see the three teens, including one in a plaid shirt, and frisk all three. The police discover a gun in the pocket of the plaid-shirted teen. He is 16, far too young to legally possess a gun in Florida, let alone a concealed handgun. But the gun charges against him are eventually thrown out by state court judges.Today, the US Supreme Court is considering whether the police acted properly by safeguarding the community from a teenager carrying a concealed pistol, or whether those same police officers violated the minor's Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches.It is an issue that is taking on a heightened sense of urgency in communities across the nation concerned about violent juvenile crime, including deadly assaults like the attack at Columbine High School in Colorado last year.It also comes at a time of increasing public distrust of the police and their tactics, as evidenced by the massive corruption uncovered within the Los Angeles Police Department and the recent trial of four New York policemen on charges that they gunned down an unarmed man they thought was carrying a gun.At the heart of the Miami case is the legal question of whether an anonymous tip is reliable enough to justify police frisking a suspect.The law is clear that a frisk is justified when police obtain information that supports the essence of the tip and independently bolsters a reasonable suspicion that a crime is under way.But what is not clear is whether a frisk is justified if police can only verify innocent details - such as a plaid shirt - contained in the tip.Defining Reasonable Suspicion:Such innocent details do not in any way confirm ongoing illegal activity. But some legal analysts say verifying innocent details can help support the overall veracity of the tip, and that can create enough reasonable suspicion to justify a frisk.Friend-of-court briefs have been filed in the case by various police and crime-victims organizations and the attorneys general of 33 states urging the court to overturn the Florida judges and allow such searches.On the other side, a coalition of civil libertarians, civil rights advocates, and the National Rifle Association is urging the court to uphold the Florida rulings."We have a case here that is going to test the court's willingness to stand up for the Fourth Amendment," says James Tomkovicz, a law professor and Fourth Amendment expert at the University of Iowa College of Law in Iowa City.How the high court resolves the Florida case will provide police officers with much-needed guidance in how to respond to anonymous tips.In some cases, the tip may prove false, and a hasty frisk would subject an innocent person to unwarranted embarrassment, fear, and possible injury.In other cases, police may have only moments to act to prevent a violent crime. "Officers who receive an anonymous tip that an individual of a particular description is carrying a bomb outside of a courthouse, or is concealing an automatic pistol outside a school, cannot ignore the potential threat of violence when, upon arriving at the location, they find the described individual at the scene," says the US solicitor general's brief in the case.Both the Florida Attorney General's Office and the US Justice Department are urging the justices to take what they say is a common-sense approach to the issue. Law-enforcement officials on the scene must have the flexibility to assess, on a case-by-case basis, the potential for the immediate and lethal use of a weapon by a suspect, they say.Not everyone agrees with this approach. "It isn't really an all-or-nothing choice that if you don't act now on the tip someone is going to die," says Mr. Tomkovicz. In the majority of cases, police retain the ability to observe suspects and conduct an independent investigation before moving in."The fact that a tip mentions a gun simply does not demonstrate that the tip is reliable," writes Harvey Sepler, an assistant public defender in Miami who is arguing the boy's case. He says police must investigate further to build a reasonable suspicion of a crime."Police across the country receive anonymous information every day. When those tips merit further investigation, police have little trouble determining whether or not the tip justifies a stop or arrest," Mr. Sepler says. "They may not, however, decide to start frisking people whenever the word 'gun' is used."To Squeeze or Not to Squeeze:Also today, in a second Fourth Amendment case, the Supreme Court is considering whether a federal agent violates the constitutional privacy rights of bus passengers when he squeezes soft-sided luggage in the overhead compartment in a random attempt to detect illicit drugs.Steven Bond argues that his drug-smuggling conviction should be overturned because the agent in his case had no reasonable suspicion, probable cause, or consent to squeeze his bag.The agent working at a checkpoint on the Texas-Mexico border detected a "brick-like object" in Mr. Bond's suitcase. He obtained permission from Bond to search inside the bag, where he found a 1.3-pound block of the illegal drug methamphetamine.Lawyers for the government argue that once Bond placed his bag in the common overhead compartment he no longer retained a reasonable expectation of privacy. As a result, the agent did not need a warrant to squeeze Bond's luggage while searching for contraband, they say.Published: February 29, 2000(c) Copyright 2000 The Christian Science Publishing Society.Related Articles on Searches:http://www.alltheweb.com/cgi-bin/asearch?type=all&query=cannabisnews+search Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #1 posted by observer on February 29, 2000 at 15:26:06 PT Any Excuse Will Do > What Evidence Do Police Need for a Search?Oh, whatever strikes their fancy at the time. Evidence is only needed to prove that suspects are not guilty when accused by police. This is from Drug Warriors & Their Prey (1996) :( http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0275950425 )''. . .Our brief review of drug war effects on the Fourth Amendment shows that the following acts are considered cause to believe that the citizen is a criminal: attending high school, traveling in a Greyhound bus, being the target of an anonymous accusation. In the name of drugs, many other acts and personal attributes now indicate criminal activity and comprise a "profile" that narcotics police use to pinpoint possible drug offenders who should be detained and searched: having a pale complexion90 having a dark complexion91 having a Hispanic appearance92 being between the ages of twenty five and thirty-five93 acting nervous94 acting calm95 carrying $100 bills96 carrying $50 bills97 carrying $20 bills98 carrying $10 bills99 carrying $5 bills100 wearing a pager101 wearing casual clothing102 wearing a black jumpsuit103 wearing clothing with a bulge in it104 wearing "a lot of gold jewelry"105 wearing perfume106 being a female who wears platform shoes107 being a female who carries a condom in her purse108 running up large electric bills109 having a heat source in a house110 having window coverings that hinder someone from peering inside a residence111 having a telephone answering machine message recorded by someone other than the person who is the phone subscriber112 owning a dog113 having a home security system114 having a recreational motor home115 driving a rental car116 driving with an unfolded road map117 driving in a car with out-of-state license plates118 having McDonalds fast food bags on a car floor119 "scrupulous obedience to traffic laws"120 failing to twist around in a car to watch as a marked patrol car passes routinely in the opposite direction121 "sitting very erect" in a car122 being a foreigner without friends or relatives in the United States123 being a foreigner who does not speak English124 returning home from a visit to Mexico without having bought souvenirs125 visiting for only a short time in a city where illegal drug sales occur126 flying from Los Angeles to Detroit127 flying from Los Angeles to Atlanta128 flying from Ft. Lauderdale to Atlanta129 flying from Dallas to Atlanta130 flying from Atlanta to Kansas City131 flying from Miami132 flying from Chicago133 flying from Detriot134 flying to and from New York City135 flying to and from San Juan, Puerto Rico136 flying to or from any city137 arriving at an airport and buying a ticket shortly before one's flight departs138 paying cash for airline tickets139 buying a one-way ticket140 buying a round trip ticket141 buying a first class ticket142 buying more than one ticket when the itinerary could have been served by one ticket143 making a trip on more than one airline144 flying nonstop145 changing planes146 having no luggage claim checks affixed to your plane ticket envelopes147 carrying luggage lacking identification tags148 incompletely filling out an airline baggage identification tag149 having a cellular telephone in a suitcase150 having American Tourister luggage151 having new luggage152 having no luggage153 traveling with a companion154 traveling without a companion and meeting no one at the destination airport155 acting as if you are looking for a person you expected to meet at the destination airport156 being among the first passengers off an airplane157 being among the last passengers off an airplane158 being among the middle group of passengers off an airplane159 arriving early in the morning160 looking at one's wristwatch161 lacking a confirmed hotel reservation162 using a telephone soon after leaving an airplane163 walking quickly164 walking slowly165 leaving an airport without loitering166 leaving an airport from an exit offering no public transportation167 leaving an airport by taxicab168 renting a motel room under a name that seems Hispanic or African-American169 renting a motel room adjoining one of a traveling companion170 using cash to pay for a motel room171 looking at a police officer172 not looking at a police officer173 "looking around at other people"174 Basically, drug warriors argue that being a citizen is sufficient cause to suspect a person of criminal conduct, thereby constricting civil liberties protections for that person. That situation is hard to distinguish from the legal status of citizens of Nazi Germany. ' ' (Richard L Miller, Drug Warriors and their Prey, 1996, pg.51-52) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0275950425 [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: