A Statute That Purports to Make Illegal the Videotaping of Police in Public Violates the 1st Amendment
A private person videotaping law enforcement officers in public, while the officers are in the performance of their duties, is a First Amendment right. As such, a state statute attempting to criminalize the act of videotaping an officer while…
Impoundment and Inventory Searches of an Arrestee’s Vehicle
Impounding and conducting an inventory search of an arrestee’s vehicle is lawful only if in compliance with the Community Caretaking Doctrine and an agency’s inventory search policies.
Prolonged Detentions and Seizure of an Item that is Lawful to Possess
Seizing a key from a suspect’s belt loop which is unrelated to the cause of the detention and using that key in an unrelated investigation violates the Fourth Amendment.
Did Detectives Dodge a Bullet? When Giving Miranda Rights in English and Spanish, Do it By the Book
The state Supreme Court ruled in November on various Miranda issues raised in the case of a Spanish-speaking defendant convicted of murder and multiple attacks on women. The defendant sought to toss his conviction after detectives gave muddled and…
Spotlighting Suspect Vehicles
A police officer using his spotlight to illuminate the inside of a person’s car is not a detention absent additional factors that would indicated to a reasonable person that he is not free to leave.