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by John Wesley Hall
Criminal Defense Lawyer and
Search and seizure law consultant
Little Rock, Arkansas
Contact: forhall @ aol.com / The Book
www.johnwesleyhall.com -
© 2003-25,
online since Feb. 24, 2003 Approx. 500,000 visits (non-robot) since 2012 Approx. 47,000 posts since 2003 (30,000+ on WordPress as of 12/31/24) -
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Fourth Amendment cases,
citations, and links -
Latest Slip Opinions:
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Foreign Intell.Surv.Ct.
FDsys, many district courts, other federal courts
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To search Search and Seizure on Lexis.com $ -
Research Links:
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Solicitor General's site
SCOTUSreport
Briefs online (but no amicus briefs)
Oyez Project (NWU)
"On the Docket"–Medill
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General (many free):
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Lexis.com $
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Findlaw.com
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F.R.Crim.P. 41
www.fd.org
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Resources
FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide (2008) (pdf)
DEA Agents Manual (2002) (download)
DOJ Computer Search Manual (2009) (pdf)
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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NACDL’s Domestic Drone Information Center
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Criminal Appeal (post-conviction) (9th Cir.)
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) -
“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] -
“You know, most men would get discouraged by now. Fortunately for you, I am not most men!”
---Pepé Le Pew -
"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, Little Rock 
Category Archives: Arrest or entry on arrest
N.D.Okla.: Misdemeanor arrest warrant permits forcible entry in this circuit
Plaintiff’s claim that a forcible entry for a misdemeanor warrant fails because this circuit has held for 25 years that Payton applies to misdemeanor warrants. Plaintiff does state a claim, however, for failure to knock-and-announce before entry. First v. Hokett, … Continue reading
E.D.Mo.: Covid delay in 48 hour McLaughlin rule not unreasonable
A 12 hour delay past the 48 hour McLaughlin rule for a finding of probable cause was not shown to be unreasonable because of Covid delays and the temporary shutdown of the St. Louis federal courthouse for cleaning. United States … Continue reading
FL2: Resisting illegal arrest without violence not a crime
Where it was clearly shown defendant’s arrest was unlawful because he was told to come out of his house to be arrested, his resisting without violence conviction could not stand. Seiracki v. State, 2022 Fla. App. LEXIS 1040 (Fla. 2d … Continue reading
E.D.N.Y.: No REP in pawnshop records uploaded to pawnshop detail
There is no reasonable expectation of privacy in pawnshop records uploaded for the NYPD pawnshop detail. (Therefore, in the trial of this case, attacking the datamining of the NYPD for information is more prejudicial than relevant under F.R.E. 403.) Gem … Continue reading
GA: Even if knock-and-talk was valid, expanding entry onto the curtilage wasn’t
The knock-and-talk here was reasonable in its inception, but the officer violated the curtilage by inspecting a car parked there. The state’s argument that reasonable suspicion permitted approaching the car was not raised below so it’s waived. “Furthermore, even if … Continue reading
NY4: One positive trash search “might be a fluke, two indicate a trend”
Based on an anonymous source, police did two trash pulls at defendant’s address. Quoting CA6: “‘While one search turning up [narcotics] in the trash might be a fluke, two indicate a trend. Whether it be a particularly large quantity of … Continue reading
W.D.Okla.: Whether 14A or 4A applies to ptf’s excessive force claim on arrest before PC found by judicial officer, result the same
Plaintiff’s excessive force claim occurred after arrest but before a judicial determination of probable cause. “If so, Mr. Willis would not have been a pretrial detainee for purposes of Plaintiff’s excessive force claim. However, because the parties characterize him as … Continue reading
NY1: PC to arrest and to search are different things
Probable cause to arrest and to search are different things. (One doesn’t automatically lead to the other.) Salcedo v. City of New York, 2022 NY Slip Op 00523, 2022 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 501 (1st Dept. Jan. 27, 2022). The … Continue reading
CA3: Def’s not showing himself for 5-6 minutes when police entered on an arrest warrant justified protective sweep
Police executed an arrest warrant at defendant’s house. It took him 5-6 minutes to show himself, coming from the basement. A protective sweep of the basement was reasonable, and firearms were found in plain view down there. A search warrant … Continue reading
CA7: Record supported finding that stop was not unreasonably extended
Whether a traffic stop was unreasonably extended for a drug dog to arrive is reviewed for clear error. The stop here was for overtinting, and the officer processed a warning by entering the information into the patrol car’s computer. He … Continue reading
CA7: Exclusionary rule doesn’t apply in civil cases
Plaintiff was arrested for possession of brass knuckles. The state court suppressed, so the state’s attorney nolle prossed. He sued under 1983. There was probable cause to arrest, and the exclusionary rule [even if the state court was right, which … Continue reading
IA: Warrantless entry for misdemeanor charge unreasonable
The warrantless entry into defendant’s apartment for a misdemeanor charge was unreasonable. She didn’t waive her reasonable expectation of privacy by partially opening the door to respond to the officers’ knock. Her obstruction charge thereafter, however, was independent of the … Continue reading
W.D.Ky.: Arrest warrant doesn’t require executing officer to check into PC for it
If there is an arrest warrant, the executing officer doesn’t have to look behind it to determine its validity. Other alleged probable cause for defendant’s stop is immaterial. United States v. Cox, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7551 (W.D.Ky. Jan. 14, … Continue reading
S.D.Ind.: SoL for false arrest starts on release from custody
The statute of limitations for a false arrest case starts with release. Manuel v. City of Joliet, Ill. (Manuel II), 903 F.3d 667, 669 (7th Cir. 2018), on remand from Manuel v. City of Joliet, Ill., 137 S. Ct. 911 … Continue reading
NM: Traffic arrest by reserve deputy in violation of statute violates state constitution
Where the legislature requires traffic arrests be made by uniformed, sworn, and salaried officers, arrest by a reserve deputy violates the state constitution. State v. Wright, 2022 N.M. LEXIS 2 (Jan. 10, 2022). “The Court finds that Mr. Hunley was … Continue reading
D.Conn.: Arrest warrant permitted entry into def’s house to attempt to locate him
Defendant was on the lam, and officers, armed with an arrest warrant, entered his house thinking he’d returned there. He wasn’t but observations were made that led to a search warrant for the house. Motion to suppress denied. The arrest … Continue reading
CA7: Merely knocking on the door to def’s motel room and him answering isn’t a seizure
Merely knocking on the door to defendant’s motel room and him answering isn’t a seizure. Moreover, showing him an arrest warrant for 15-20 seconds was not a seizure (but he didn’t even adequately brief it). He then consented to entry … Continue reading
CA6: Arguable PC defeats false arrest claim
Plaintiff is a police officer who was apparently drunk in the Detroit airport after returning to Michigan with his children for Thanksgiving weekend. He ended up being arrested and sued. He understood he was impaired and was going to have … Continue reading
E.D.Mich.: Prosecutor allegedly drafting false affidavit without PC not absolutely immune
A prosecutor allegedly drafting a false affidavit without probable cause for arrest warrant has no absolute immunity. There is no absolute immunity for drafting questions for a witness interview by another that explicitly avoids exculpatory information. Macmaster v. Busacca, 2021 … Continue reading
CA7: Illegal detention claim accrues on release
Plaintiff’s Fourth Amendment pretrial detention claim accrued when he was released from detention, so it was barred by the statute of limitations. His post trial detention claim based on malicious prosecution is a due process claim, and it was improperly … Continue reading