The+4th+Amendment+Interview+Questions+(2)

Amendment 4 (2)

1.) Do you believe that the fourth amendment is relevant in the United States judicial system?

In the judicial system it is the amendment that is most hotly contested and most relevant.

2.) Do you believe the interpretation of the 4th amendment has changed, if so by what? Our forefathers understood that they could not prepare for every posibility so they framed the amendments using a broad brush. For example, how could they decide whether you have a right to be secure against governmental intrusion in your car when the concept of cars were not known to them. The Courts then look to the 4th amendment for guidance which evolves as society's needs evolve. For example, after 9/11 society's needs swung more to security, so the government was given more leeway.

3.) Do you believe wire tapping should be considered a seizure? The fourth amendment gives the right to be "secure" against unreasonable searches and seizures. The government has no business examining your private doings unless there is reason to believe you are committing a crime and must then demonstrate to the Court justification for the governments intervention. So yes, private conversations should be private. That's what it means to be secure.

4.) Do you believe schools should have probable cause for a search?

Schools are deemed to be "in loco parentis" or translated from Latin, "In the place of a parent". A parent's rights, as a private citizen, and as a person charged with bringing their child up correctly, can do things that the government could not--such as walk into your room and look for marijuana. Where government law enforcement would need probable cause, a parent or a school does not.

5.) With the new interpretation of the 4th amendment do you believe a search warrant is still going to be needed?

Not sure what you mean by this question. Unless the constitution is overturned warrants will still be needed to intrude on the lives of private citizens. There are exceptions that will contine to evolve. For example, in the case of exigent circumstances. If an officer chases a suspect into a house, he has the right to follow him in to catch him without a warrant. This is known as the "Hot Pursuit" exception. Or if an officer is walking by your home and sees you (and you see him) while you are smoking marijuana, the officer need not get a warrant because by the time he does the evidence of the crime would disappear.

6.) What is your prediction of the 4th amendment in the next 10 years?

It will continue to evolve as it has for the past 200 years.

7.) What is your opinion on the Exclusionary Rule?

The exclusionary rule is the punishment to law enforcement when they don't follow the rules. Police follow the rules because they don't want to see the guilty set free. It was the awesome power of governmental tyranny that worried the framers as they had just had a bad experience with England rule.