Law Commons^™

Computationally Assessing Suspicion, Wesley M. Oliver, Morgan A. Gray, Jaromir Savelka, Kevin D. Ashley

University of Cincinnati Law Review

Law enforcement officers performing drug interdiction on interstate highways have to decide nearly every day whether there is reasonable suspicion to detain motorists until a trained dog can sniff for the presence of drugs. The officers’ assessments are often wrong, however, and lead to unnecessary detentions of innocent persons and the suppression of drugs found on guilty ones. We propose a computational method of evaluating suspicion in these encounters and offer experimental results from early efforts demonstrating its feasibility. With the assistance of large language and predictive machine learning models, it appears that judges, advocates, and even police officers could …

The Automated Fourth Amendment, Maneka Sinha

Emory Law Journal

Courts routinely defer to police officer judgments in reasonable suspicion and probable cause determinations. Increasingly, though, police officers outsource these threshold judgments to new forms of technology that purport to predict and detect crime and identify those responsible. These policing technologies automate core police determinations about whether crime is occurring and who is responsible.

Criminal procedure doctrine has failed to insist on some level of scrutiny of—or skepticism about—the reliability of this technology. Through an original study analyzing numerous state and federal court opinions, this Article exposes the implications of law enforcement’s reliance on these practices given the weighty interests …

State V. Li, 297 A.3d 908 (R.I. 2023)., Elijah M. Santos

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

State V. Joseph, 297 A.3d 490 (R.I. 2023)., Erica Whaley

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Modern Border: The Government Can Search . . . Anything?, Abigail Nusbaum

FIU Law Review

The evolution of modern technology has introduced new obstacles in interpreting the Fourth Amendment’s application to searches of peoples’ effects. Specifically, the longstanding exception to the Fourth Amendment permitting searches at the international border in the absence of probable cause does not so neatly apply to forensic searches of cell phones. Consequently, a circuit split has emerged on two aspects of the issue: the scope of the border exception and the requisite level of suspicion within that exception. The Supreme Court should find that forensic cell phone searches at the international border implicate Fourth Amendment privacy interests, requiring the border …

The Black Fourth Amendment, Charisma Hunter

Washington and Lee Law Review Online

Policing Black bodies serves at the forefront of the American policing system. Black bodies are subject to everlasting surveillance through institutions and everyday occurrences. From relaxing in a Starbucks to exercising, Black bodies are deemed criminals, surveilled, profiled, and subjected to perpetual implicit bias when participating in mundane activities. Black people should have the same protections as white people and should possess the ability to engage in everyday, commonplace, and routine activities.

The Fourth Amendment was not drafted with the intention of protecting Black bodies. In fact, Black bodies were considered three-fifths of a person at the drafting of the …

“Bang!”: Shotspotter Gunshot Detection Technology, Predictive Policing, And Measuring Terry’S Reach, Harvey Gee

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

ShotSpotter technology is a rapid identification and response system used in ninety American cities that is designed to detect gunshots and dispatch police. ShotSpotter is one of many powerful surveillance tools used by local police departments to purportedly help fight crime, but they often do so at the expense of infringing upon privacy rights and civil liberties. This Article expands the conversation about ShotSpotter technology considerably by examining the adjacent Fourth Amendment issues emanating from its use. For example, law enforcement increasingly relies on ShotSpotter to create reasonable suspicion where it does not exist. In practice, the use of ShotSpotter …

Recent Developments, Peyton Hildebrand

Arkansas Law Review

In a 5-4 opinion, the United States Supreme Court once again denied a Bivens action. This case involved a tragic crossborder shooting by a border patrol agent standing on United States soil, who shot and killed a young boy standing on Mexican soil. Petitioners, the boy’s parents, sought relief under Biven2, arguing the agent’s action violated the Constitution. However, the Court determined the cross-border shooting was a new Bivens context, which required an analysis of whether any special factors “counseled hesitation” for the cause of action to be extended. The Court concluded Bivens was inappropriate because several factors “counseled hesitation”—namely, …

Searches Of The Person: A New Approach To Electronic Device Searches At Canadian Customs, Justin Doll

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

What goes through your mind at customs? As you wait in that folded line, edging closer to a row of enclosed booths manned by uniformed officers, surrounded by security cameras and warning signs? Perhaps you’re trying to act naturally, then wondering if it shows? Perhaps you’re mentally recalculating the amount you’ve scribbled onto your customs declaration? Or perhaps you’re exhausted from your flight, maybe nursing a bit of a hangover, not thinking about much at all? When you finally get to the front of the line, how do you expect your conversation with the customs officer to go?

According to …

State V. Nelson: Determining "Reasonable Suspicion" For Investigatory Stops In Maine, Sandra Denison Shannon

Maine Law Review

In 1994 the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, held in State v. Nelson that a police officer's observation of motorist Theodore Nelson consuming a single can of beer over a one-hour time period did not, by itself, give rise to a reasonable suspicion that Nelson thereafter illegally operated the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. This Note analyzes the Law Court's decision in Nelson. In its analysis, this Note compares Nelson to several other Maine opinions and recommends that, if the Maine Law Court is to continue to adhere to both objective and subjective standards in …

The Prevailing Culture Over Immigration: Centralized Immigration And Policies Between Attrition And Accommodation, Antonios Kouroutakis

Seton Hall Circuit Review

No abstract provided.

Terry And Beyond: Testing The Underlying Assumption Of Reasonable Suspicion, Illya D. Lichtenberg, Alisa Smith, Michael Copeland

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

The War Against Ourselves: Heien V. North Carolina, The War On Drugs, And Police Militarization, Mallory Meads

University of Miami Law Review

Approximately fifty years ago, America declared a war against itself—the “War on Drugs.” Since then, our local and state police, armed with military weapons and federal funding, have fought tirelessly against “public enemy number one”—drugs. Not surprisingly, this war has created an atmosphere where it is now common to see police officers equipped with a mentality and armor that had previously only been seen in the dark-trenches of an international war zone. Worse yet, this battlefield mentality has leaked into almost every area of police-civilian encounters.

As a “loyal foot solider” in the Executive’s War on Drugs, however, the Supreme …

The Big Picture View Of Anonymous Tips From Ordinary People, Amanda M. Dadiego

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

What's Fear Got To Do With It?: The "Armed And Dangerous" Requirement Of Terry, Gerald S. Reamey

Marquette Law Review

Rarely has a court’s opinion, even one from the Supreme Court of the United States, so altered existing notions of constitutional criminal procedure law as did the opinion in Terry v. Ohio. On several levels, the opinion dramatically shifted the way in which the Fourth Amendment was understood. Law students who had learned about the probable cause “requirement” and the warrant “requirement” were surprised to learn, especially in the case of the former, that these “requirements” were not required at all. To continue to conceptualize the Fourth Amendment’s single sentence guarantees as consisting of a “warrant clause” and a “reasonableness” …

Hijacked At The Border: Why The Government Should Have Reasonable Suspicion Before Conducting Intrusive Examinations Of Our Personal Electronic Devices, Ryne Spengler

Seton Hall Circuit Review

No abstract provided.

Strip Searching In The Age Of Colorblind Racism: The Disparate Impact Of Florence V. Board Of Chosen Freeholders Of The County Of Burlington, André Keeton

Michigan Journal of Race and Law

In 2012, the Supreme Court of the United States decided Florence v. Board of Chosen Freeholders of the County of Burlington. The Court held that full strip searches, including cavity searches, are permissible regardless of the existence of basic reasonable suspicion that the arrestee is in possession of contraband. Further, the Court held that law enforcement may conduct full strip searches after arresting an individual for a minor offense and irrespective of the circumstances surrounding the arrest. These holdings upended typical search jurisprudence. Florence sanctions the overreach of state power and extends to law enforcement and corrections officers the unfettered …

Has The Replacement Of "Probable Cause" With "Reasonable Suspicion" Resulted In The Creation Of The Best Of All Possible Worlds?, Robert Berkley Harper

Akron Law Review

Police officers sometimes need flexibility to respond appropriately to a variety of factual situations confronting them in street encounters. It is a huge task to promulgate a set of rules which will be flexible enough to cope with the enormous variations in police-citizen encounters, but which at the same time, the police can easily and effectively apply. It is not the purpose of this article to criticize the court's efforts in this area. It is the purpose of this article to evaluate investigatory stops by police officers as they perform their duties with this lesser standard than probable cause. The …

Dudley Do Wrong: An Analysis Of A "Stop And Identify" Statute In Hiibel V. Sixth Judicial District Of Nevada, James G. Warner

Akron Law Review

Part II of this note traces the development of “stop and identify” statutes, including its origins in historical vagrancy and loitering statutes, courts’ treatment of such laws, and the progression of the specific Nevada statute at issue. Part III examines the appellate and Supreme Court decisions in the Hiibel case. Part IV analyzes the Court’s decision in Hiibel under the void for vagueness doctrine and the Fourth and Fifth Amendments, and highlights the recent enactment of a “stop and identify” statute in Arizona. Finally, Part V concludes that the Nevada “stop and identify” statute allows too great of an intrusion …

In The Wake Of Florida V. J.L. - When Anonymous Tips Give Police Reasonable Suspicion, Robyn Silvermintz

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Supreme Court, Monroe County, People Ex Rel. Gordon V. O'Flynn, Hannah Abrams

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Search And Seizures: Constitutionally Protected Or Discretionary Police Work?, Jaren Fernan

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Supreme Court, New York County, People V. Smith, Jessica Miller

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Appellate Division, Fourth Department, People V. Hall, Eric Pack

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Court Of Appeals Of New York, People V. Moore, Gennaro Savastano

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Criminal Procedure Decisions From The October 2006 Term, Susan N. Herman

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Consensual Police-Citizen Encounters: Human Factors Of A Reasonable Person And Individual Bias., Evan M. Mcguire

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable government intrusion. The government must establish probable cause and obtain a warrant to search a particular location. However, there are minute Fourth Amendment distinctions at various levels of police-citizen interaction which act as exceptions to the general rule. Officers may approach a citizen for any reason as long as a reasonable person in their place would feel able to escape the officer’s advances. Ultimately, abuse of this exception to Fourth Amendment protections occurs frequently, especially when it comes to minority populations. The police can conduct a search without a warrant if there is reasonable …

New Jersey V. T.L.O.: The Supreme Court Severely Limits Schoolchildrens' Fourth Amendment Rights When Being Searched By Public School Officials, Missy Kelly Bankhead

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Court Of Appeals Of New York – People V. Hall, Christopher Shishko

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

"What Hath Hiibel Wrought?": The Constitutionality Of Compelled Self-Identification, Robert A. Hull

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.