Criminal Defense Homicide Case

Fourth Amendment Searches and Seizures in Contemporary America

The conviction of a client charged with murder is threatened by evidence the prosecution holds. There are indications that this evidence was obtained unconstitutionally. Presumably, the exclusionary rule would be the primary vehicle for moving to have this evidence excluded. If the search and seizure was conducted without a warrant and not incident to an arrest, vehicle stop, or hot pursuit, then there is a good chance the evidence can be prevented from being presented to a jury. Any evidence obtained as a result of an illegal warrantless search would also be excluded under the "fruit of the poisonous tree" doctrine. If there was a problem with the probable cause determination or how the items searched for and seized were described in the warrant, then getting the evidence excluded will be much harder if the police can show...
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