Archives
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Recent Posts
- N.D.Tex.: AUSA can summarize what the gov’t knows for SW application
- S.D.N.Y.: No right to quash SCA warrant before execution; remedies are after
- S.D.N.Y.: SW not based on mere speculation
- D.Mont.: Officers had RS for stop; it wasn’t based on the race of the suspects
- M.D.Pa.: SW for phone 19 months after alleged crimes showed PC
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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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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)
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"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. 
Monthly Archives: September 2020
CA5: Search for ptf’s ID was reasonable when she refused to ID self and was charged with obstruction
The search of plaintiff’s wallet for her ID was reasonable when she refused to identify herself when stalled on an interstate highway. A search of the car for her wallet and then the search of the wallet was thus reasonable … Continue reading
PA: Warrantless entry for mental health check unjustified for lack of danger
The warrantless police entry into defendant’s home for a mental health check wasn’t justified by the facts because of a lack of danger. The plain view is suppressed for lack of a proper view. Commonwealth v. Schneider, 2020 Pa. Super. … Continue reading
CA10: Ptf didn’t have to show officer his ID and that wasn’t PC for arrest
“Mglej’s refusal to provide Deputy Gardner with his driver’s license or some other form of identification, then, as Deputy Gardner demanded, did not create probable cause to arrest Mglej under Utah Code § 76-8-301.5(1). Thus, sufficient to defeat summary judgment, … Continue reading
CA3: State court suppression of search isn’t favorable termination for malicious prosecution case
Just because the evidence was suppressed in plaintiff’s criminal case and then affirmed on appeal doesn’t mean the criminal case was terminated in his favor on the facts. He possessed heroin, and that’s not in dispute, and there was probable … Continue reading
CNET: Warrant canary: What you need to know about this online privacy warning sign
CNET: Warrant canary: What you need to know about this online privacy warning sign by Rae Hodge (“Some companies still use warrant canaries to warn customers of threats to their privacy by US government subpoenas. But the legal waters remain … Continue reading
E.D.Cal.: Chain of custody after execution of a SW isn’t a 2255 ground
Chain of custody after execution of a search warrant isn’t a 2255 ground. It’s a trial issue that was waived and only goes to credibility of evidence for the jury. United States v. Smith, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 163635 (E.D. … Continue reading
WA: Ruse text messages with known contact violated state REP
A ruse police text message exchange with defendant with one of his known contacts violated his reasonable expectation of privacy under the state constitution’s right of privacy. State v. Bowman, 2020 Wash. App. LEXIS 2463 (Sept. 8, 2020):
Techdirt: Government’s ‘Reverse’ Warrant Rejected By Two Consecutive Federal Judges
Techdirt: Government’s ‘Reverse’ Warrant Rejected By Two Consecutive Federal Judges by Tim Cushing (“Warrants are supposed to have a certain amount of particularity. These warrants have none. All they have are some coordinates and a clock. Fortunately, as the EFF … Continue reading
CA7: Civil claim for false arrest or detention on fabricated evidence is 4A claim
“A claim for false arrest or pretrial detention based on fabricated evidence sounds in the Fourth Amendment right to be free from seizure without probable cause.” Patrick v. City of Chicago, 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 28380 (7th Cir. Sept. 8, … Continue reading
CA3: Postal inspector had RS to detain package for dog sniff
“The [postal] inspector had reasonable suspicion. [¶] The inspector acted reasonably. Five signs aroused his suspicion: First, the package was from Puerto Rico, a common source of illegal cocaine shipments. Second, the package was sent by Priority Mail, a common … Continue reading
CA9: Neighbor’s 911 call about burglary justified police entry protective sweep
A 911 burglary call by defendant’s neighbor led to police coming to the house, and the police entered to look for suspects. This was a reasonable entry based on exigency. United States v. Booth, 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 28377 (9th … Continue reading
Vice: Faulty Facial Recognition Led to His Arrest—Now He’s Suing
Vice: Faulty Facial Recognition Led to His Arrest—Now He’s Suing by Natalie O’Neill (“Michael Oliver is the second Black man found to be wrongfully arrested by Detroit police because of the technology—and his lawyers suspect there are many more.”)
Reason: Did the Ninth Circuit Create a New Fourth Amendment Notice Requirement for Surveillance Practices?
Reason: Did the Ninth Circuit Create a New Fourth Amendment Notice Requirement for Surveillance Practices? by Orin S. Kerr (“An overlooked part of United States v. Moalin could have a major impact on surveillance law.”)
D.Ariz.: No REP in one’s criminal history from examination
There is no reasonable expectation of privacy in an inmate’s criminal history search that led to a detainer. Brink v. Herron, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162680 (D. Ariz. Aug. 7, 2020). Defendant’s application for a successor 2255 based on defense … Continue reading
CA6: Police dog biting handcuffed, prone, and nonresisting arrest is excessive force
A police dog bit plaintiff while he was handcuffed and on the ground. That’s excessive force if a jury believes it was gratuitous. Qualified immunity denied. Hammond v. County of Oakland, 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 28285 (9th Cir. Sept. 4, … Continue reading
CA2: Arguable PC to arrest makes it valid
“Because the defendants had at least arguable probable cause to arrest Barnes for an open container violation, the search was also lawful. A search incident to arrest is lawful where the officer reasonably believed he had probable cause, regardless of … Continue reading
AK: Aerial surveillance of a residential backyard to photograph it with a telephoto lens violates the state constitution
Aerial surveillance of a residential backyard to photograph it with a telephoto lens violates the Alaska Constitution where the landowner took precautions to protect his privacy at ground-level. McKelvey v. State, 2020 Alas. App. LEXIS 71 (Sept. 4, 2020):
IL: Mistaken application of unambiguous statute not a Heien reasonable mistake of law
“Kinsella misinterpreted an unambiguous statute, thereby committing an unreasonable mistake of law. See Gaytan, 2015 IL 116223, ¶ 45; see also United States v. Stanbridge, 813 F.3d 1032, 1037-38 (7th Cir. 2016) (‘[The officer] simply was wrong about what the … Continue reading
CT: No justification for welfare check entry; and then they waited an hour to enter
The trial court erroneously held that there was an objective basis for finding probable cause to enter defendant’s apartment for a welfare check. There wasn’t. There had been an altercation in the laundry room. The fact his car was parked … Continue reading
AR: No REP in camera planted in someone else’s bedroom
Defendant had no reasonable expectation of privacy in a camera planted for video voyeurism in someone else’s bedroom. Powell v. State, 2020 Ark. App. 371, 2020 Ark. App. LEXIS 416 (Sept. 2, 2020):