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- SCOTUS: Geofence warrants governed by Carpenter and are a search; remanded for resolution of issues (interesting take on third party doctrine, too)
- The Guardian: ‘It’s dangerous and it’s going to erode trust’: redesign of US government websites stokes surveillance fears
- W.D.N.Y.: Possibility of co-conspirators in mass murder justified emergency disclosure request to Apple, Verizon, and Facebook
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ABA Journal Web 100, Best Law Blogs (2015-17) (then discontinued)
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by John Wesley Hall
Criminal Defense Lawyer and
Search and seizure law consultant
Little Rock, Arkansas
Contact: forhall @ aol.com
Search and Seizure (6th ed. 2025)
www.johnwesleyhall.com -
© 2003-26,
online since Feb. 24, 2003 Approx. 600,000 visits (non-robot) since 2012 Approx. 50,000 posts since 2003 (29,000 on WordPress as of 12/31/25) -
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Fourth Amendment cases, citations, and links -
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To search Search and Seizure on Lexis.com $ -
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General (many free):
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Stringrays (ACLU No. Cal.) (pdf)
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Congressional Research Service:
--Electronic Communications Privacy Act (2012)
--Overview of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (2012)
--Outline of Federal Statutes Governing Wiretapping and Electronic Eavesdropping (2012)
--Federal Statutes Governing Wiretapping and Electronic Eavesdropping (2012)
--Federal Laws Relating to Cybersecurity: Discussion of Proposed Revisions (2012)
ACLU on privacy
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Section 1983 Blog -
"If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. It isn't, and they don't."
—Me -
"Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well."
–Josh Billings (pseudonym of Henry Wheeler Shaw), Josh Billings on Ice, and Other Things (1868) (erroneously attributed to Robert Louis Stevenson, among others) -
“I am still learning.”
—Domenico Giuntalodi (but misattributed to Michelangelo Buonarroti (common phrase throughout 1500's)). -
"Love work; hate mastery over others; and avoid intimacy with the government."
—Shemaya, in the Thalmud -
"It is a pleasant world we live in, sir, a very pleasant world. There are bad people in it, Mr. Richard, but if there were no bad people, there would be no good lawyers."
—Charles Dickens, “The Old Curiosity Shop ... With a Frontispiece. From a Painting by Geo. Cattermole, Etc.” 255 (1848) -
"A system of law that not only makes certain conduct criminal, but also lays down rules for the conduct of the authorities, often becomes complex in its application to individual cases, and will from time to time produce imperfect results, especially if one's attention is confined to the particular case at bar. Some criminals do go free because of the necessity of keeping government and its servants in their place. That is one of the costs of having and enforcing a Bill of Rights. This country is built on the assumption that the cost is worth paying, and that in the long run we are all both freer and safer if the Constitution is strictly enforced."
—Williams v. Nix, 700 F. 2d 1164, 1173 (8th Cir. 1983) (Richard Sheppard Arnold, J.), rev'd Nix v. Williams, 467 US. 431 (1984). -
"The criminal goes free, if he must, but it is the law that sets him free. Nothing can destroy a government more quickly than its failure to observe its own laws, or worse, its disregard of the charter of its own existence."
—Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643, 659 (1961). -
"Any costs the exclusionary rule are costs imposed directly by the Fourth Amendment."
—Yale Kamisar, 86 Mich.L.Rev. 1, 36 n. 151 (1987). -
"There have been powerful hydraulic pressures throughout our history that bear heavily on the Court to water down constitutional guarantees and give the police the upper hand. That hydraulic pressure has probably never been greater than it is today."
— Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 39 (1968) (Douglas, J., dissenting). -
"The great end, for which men entered into society, was to secure their property."
—Entick v. Carrington, 19 How.St.Tr. 1029, 1066, 95 Eng. Rep. 807 (C.P. 1765) -
"It is a fair summary of history to say that the safeguards of liberty have frequently been forged in controversies involving not very nice people. And so, while we are concerned here with a shabby defrauder, we must deal with his case in the context of what are really the great themes expressed by the Fourth Amendment."
—United States v. Rabinowitz, 339 U.S. 56, 69 (1950) (Frankfurter, J., dissenting) -
"The course of true law pertaining to searches and seizures, as enunciated here, has not–to put it mildly–run smooth."
—Chapman v. United States, 365 U.S. 610, 618 (1961) (Frankfurter, J., concurring). -
"A search is a search, even if it happens to disclose nothing but the bottom of a turntable."
—Arizona v. Hicks, 480 U.S. 321, 325 (1987) -
"For the Fourth Amendment protects people, not places. What a person knowingly exposes to the public, even in his own home or office, is not a subject of Fourth Amendment protection. ... But what he seeks to preserve as private, even in an area accessible to the public, may be constitutionally protected."
—Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347, 351 (1967) -
“Experience should teach us to be most on guard to protect liberty when the Government’s purposes are beneficent. Men born to freedom are naturally alert to repel invasion of their liberty by evil-minded
rulers. The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.”
—United States v. Olmstead, 277 U.S. 438, 479 (1925) (Brandeis, J., dissenting)
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“Liberty—the freedom from unwarranted intrusion by government—is as easily lost through insistent nibbles by government officials who seek to do their jobs too well as by those whose purpose it is to oppress; the piranha can be as deadly as the shark.”
—United States v. $124,570, 873 F.2d 1240, 1246 (9th Cir. 1989) -
"You can't always get what you want / But if you try sometimes / You just might find / You get what you need."
—Mick Jagger & Keith Richards, Let it Bleed (album, 1969) -
"In Germany, they first came for the communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for
the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Catholic. Then they came
for me–and by that time there was nobody left to speak up."
—Martin Niemöller (1945) [he served seven years in a concentration camp] -
“Children grow up thinking the adult world is ordered, rational, fit for purpose. It’s crap. Becoming a man is realising that it’s all rotten. Realising how to celebrate that rottenness, that’s freedom.”
– John le Carré, The Night Manager (1993), line by Richard Roper -
"The point of the Fourth Amendment, which often is not grasped by zealous officers, is not that it denies law enforcement the support of the usual inferences which reasonable men draw from evidence. Its protection consists in requiring that those inferences be drawn by a neutral and detached magistrate instead of being judged by the officer engaged in the often competitive enterprise of ferreting out crime."
—Johnson v. United States, 333 U.S. 10, 13-14 (1948) -
The book was dedicated in the first (1982) and sixth (2025) editions to Justin William Hall (1975-2025). He was three when this project started in 1978.
Website design by Wally Waller, Colorado Springs. 
Category Archives: Consent
GA: Woman’s presence in a camper telling police she shares the bedroom was reasonable for apparent authority
A woman’s presence in defendant’s camper, his residence, was some evidence of her authority to give consent for officers to enter the camper, particularly where she told the officers, shortly after they entered and before they saw the handgun, that … Continue reading →
NY4: Consent shown voluntary; def showed police which key opened the front door
Consent found voluntary by pointing out which key opened the door: “Testimony at the suppression hearing established that, although defendant was in custody at the time he gave consent, he cooperated with the police and assisted them in gaining entry … Continue reading →
TN: The privilege of driving doesn’t operate as a consent to a blood draw
The privilege of driving doesn’t operate as a consent to a blood draw. The trial court here specifically found no consent, and the record does not preponderate against the finding. There is still no good faith exception in Tennessee. State … Continue reading →
N.D.Iowa: Consent veto under Randolph requires it actually be exercised
On a motion to reconsider, the court finds that since defendant didn’t object to the consent of another under Randolph, it doesn’t apply. Also, once they had consent from somebody, they didn’t have to ask others. A safe was also … Continue reading →
ID: Motorhome stopped when vehicle behind was stopped for following too close; contact with driver was by consent
The officer stopped a vehicle for following a motorhome too closely. The motorhome also pulled over and stopped, and the driver attempted to come back to the stop, but he was told to get back in the motorhome. When the … Continue reading →
M.D.Ala.: Stop for DUI at gate to Army base was reasonable
Defendant was stopped in a civilian vehicle entering Fort Rucker, Alabama, and he appeared to be under the influence. Defendant’s breath test was reasonable under Birchfield and federal law. United States v. Rutherford, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84945 (M.D.Ala. June … Continue reading →
OH5: Officer’s hand out for keys was not a request for consent
The officer had no cause to search defendant’s glove compartment as to whether the car was rented or stolen. When the officer came to him with hand outstretched for the keys, that was not consent. State v. Clark, 2016-Ohio-4614, 2016 … Continue reading →
N.D.Ill.: Def not credible where he contradicted under oath at suppression hearing his Pretrial Services interview on drug use
Defendant’s credibility at the suppression hearing was blown by his contradictory statements to Pretrial Services about his drug use. He directly contradicted under oath what he told them. Therefore, the court believes the government’s version of events. United States v. … Continue reading →
OH11: Officer’s failure to mention consent in his reports undermined his credibility at the suppression hearing
Police came to defendant’s girlfriend’s house to arrest him, and she allegedly let them in to look but they found methamphetamine too. No consent was mentioned in the police report, and she denied it. The trial court found no consent, … Continue reading →
OH4: Consent sought after telling def she was “good to go” was not the result of an unreasonable detention
Consent to search sought after the defendant was told she was “good to go” was not the result of an unreasonable detention and was consensual. State v. Davis, 2016-Ohio-3539, 2016 Ohio App. LEXIS 2376 (4th Dist. June 14, 2016). Nervousness … Continue reading →
OR: WA state trooper couldn’t make stop in OR under statute or common law; citizen’s arrest doesn’t apply to traffic offenses
Defendant was stopped for speeding by a Washington State Trooper who followed defendant into Oregon. The out-of-state officer didn’t have any statutory authority for a stop and the common law didn’t permit officers outside their jurisdiction to make stops. Citizen’s … Continue reading →
CA8 decides merits of state search claim to find it valid and thus no “Strickland prejudice”
Defendant suffered no Strickland prejudice from defense counsel’s failure to file a motion to suppress the contents of a Crown Royal bag that was found in a search for a long barrelled gun. A kitchen cabinet was opened and drugs … Continue reading →
KY: Consent to look at a cell phone for a number wasn’t limited to the contacts folder; texts and calls could be examined, too
Consent to look at a cell phone for a number did not limit the search to the contacts folder; it was reasonable to look at calls and texts from that number, too. The officer also clicked on a photo marked … Continue reading →
OH9: Handing over cell phone to police and giving password is consent to search
Defendant sent a video of himself with a child to a friend who showed it to the police. The police came to his house and asked about the video, and he admitted making it, and then he turned over his … Continue reading →
D.S.D.: No suppression for any alleged violation of Vienna Convention for dual U.S.-Canadian citizen
Defendant was indicted for selling fellatio from his 17 year old cousin and a 15 year old at the 2014 Sturgis motorcycle rally. There was probable cause for his arrest. Any alleged violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Rights … Continue reading →
LA5: Video of stop supported consent despite the police reports
The trial court abused its discretion in suppressing a search because the officer’s report wasn’t a complete reflection of the video. The video shows defendant clearly consenting by agreeing to it and then opening the car door. State v. Jackson, … Continue reading →
CA3: Direction to ptf to remove pants for observation of UA on supervision was reasonable
Plaintiff was in a urine testing program as a condition of state supervision, and, to prevent cheating, the testing officer directed him to remove his pants so direct observation could be done. Plaintiff characterizes this as a strip search. The … Continue reading →
WA: SW affidavit failed to show nexus to def’s home
Because of a lack of probable cause in nexus to the premise, the search warrant was improperly issued, and the superior court properly ordered return of the property seized. In re Search Warrant for 13811 Highway 99, Lynnwood, Washington, 2016 … Continue reading →
E.D.La.: Police video shows consent
The video shows consent: “The recording clearly demonstrates that during the traffic stop, while both were standing by the front passenger door to the vehicle, the officer asked Jackson if he had a ‘problem with me searching your vehicle?’ to … Continue reading →
S.D.Fla.: One isn’t “seized” just because a law enforcement officer walked up to him
Defendant was not “seized” just because a police officer got out of a car and walked up to him and his cohorts. The fact nobody moved isn’t a seizure. Then, a plain view of drugs and a gun occurred, and … Continue reading →