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What is "The Exclusionary Rule"?
The
exclusionary rule is a remedy created by our justice system which
results in the suppression from the State's case evidence which has
been derived from an illegal search or seizure under the Fourth
Amendment to the United States Constitution.
The rule
is designed to deter unlawful police conduct. This assures that each
citizen has the right to be free from unreasonable invasions of
privacy. It is also designed, to a lesser extent, to protect the
integrity of the judicial process from the effects of unlawful
government conduct.
Do I ever have to give my consent for a search of my home or my automobile?
You
never are required to consent to a search by the police. Although you
may sometimes be threatened by the thought of being detained by the
police until a search warrant is procured, you have the absolute right
not to give consent. This does not mean that you can physically stop
the police from effectuating an otherwise lawful search, such as with a
search warrant, or where they have probable cause to search and exigent
circumstances exits, or where the search is incident to a valid arrest.
Do the police have to advise me that I have the right to refuse to consent to a search?
Under
Federal Law, no. But under the case laws of the State of New Jersey,
the police are required to advise you that you have the right to refuse
to give consent to search. The failure to advise you of such a right,
and a subsequent consent, could be held to be an unlawful search and
seizure in New Jersey.
What happens if I confessed to a crime or offense after an illegal search and seizure?
Under
Wong Sun v. United States, the "fruits of the poisonous tree" are
excludable. This means that any evidence obtained (even a confession)
which results from the unlawful search and seizure of evidence (or an
unlawful detention of a suspect) can be suppressed at trial.
If the police knock on my door and ask to come in, do I have to let them in?
Again,
only if they have a warrant. If they don't have a warrant, you have the
right to say "No", and close the door. In fact, you are not required to
even answer the door when they knock.
What is meant by "probable cause"?
The
probable cause rule requires that the police not make an arrest or
search unless the information they possess indicates that it is more
probable than not that a particular person has committed a crime or
that particularly described evidence will be found in the place sought
to be searched. |
