Good Faith Exception and The Exclusionary Rule
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Feb 20, 2024
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GOOD FAITH EXCEPTION AND THE EXCLUSIONARY RULE
Good Faith Exception and The Exclusionary Rule
Shelby Sanchez
JUS – 441
Professor Estrada
1
GOOD FAITH EXCEPTION AND THE EXCLUSIONARY RULE
Purpose of the Exclusionary Rule
The exclusionary rule stops the authority from using a majority of proof collected in disruption of the United States Constitution. The cases that had huge impacts on the exclusionary
rule were, Mapp v. Ohio and Miranda v. Arizona. Mapp v. Ohio
case of 1961 involves a woman named, Dollree Mapp, who was sentenced for possessing offensive materials after an undoubtedly unlawful police search of her home for a fugitive. This case recognized that evidence obtained from an irrational search or seizure is a intrusion of the Fourth Amendment of the Bill of Rights
(Oyez, 2018)
. On the other hand, Miranda v. Arizona
case of 1966 involves a man named, Ernesto Miranda, who was detained in his home and transported to the police station for an interrogation in association to a rape and abduction
(Cornell Law, 2019)
. After the interrogation, the police received a written confession from Miranda. This evidence was admitted into trial despite the fact that the police officers admitted that they had not advised Miranda of his rights to have an attorney present during the interrogation
(Oyez, 2018)
. While this case presents that the exclusionary rule applies to improperly elicited self-incriminatory statements gathered in violation of the Fifth amendment (Cornell Law, 2019)
. Additionally, to evidence gained in situations where the government violated the defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel. Good Faith
The good faith exception to the exclusionary rule means that “evidence is not excluded if it is obtained by officers who reasonably rely on a search warrant that turns out to be invalid”
(Cornell Law, 2019)
. The good faith exception gives the courts an opportunity to consider the mental state of the police officer in order to make sure theory were having good faith when executing a search. This exception is usually applying in cases that deal with police employees 2
GOOD FAITH EXCEPTION AND THE EXCLUSIONARY RULE
that have accidentally made errors in entering or updating databases. This leads officers to innocently search for the wrong people. Another example of when courts would accept the good faith exception would be in cases where officers rely on law that later changes. A case example of this is United States v. Sparks case of 2013
, where an officer placed a global positioning system (GPS) on defendant, Jennifer Sparks car without a warrant because the laws in that time stated this was acceptable. Later, a Supreme Court decision from a different case, came to the conclusion that warrants are required. However, since at the time, placing a GPS on a car without
a warrant was legal the Supreme Court would likely state that the evidence found from the GPS search is admissible in court
(Schwartzbach, 2016)
. Arizona v. Evans case in 1991 is a prime example of when law enforcement evidence was suppressed due to the exclusionary rule
(Oyez, 2018)
. A police officer stopped an individual that was driving the incorrect fashion on a one-way road. The officer found that there was an outstanding warrant for Evans’ arrest. While the arrest was taking place, Evans dropped marijuana on the floor so the officers searched his car and discovered additional marijuana. However, the police were later informed that his arrest warrant was suppressed and the reason it was on the record was due to a clerical error. This case helped rule that the exclusionary rule does not apply when the police conduct a search relying on search warrants or other documents that turn out to be invalid
(UpCounsel, 2017)
. Reasonable Exception
The definition of the general term ‘good faith’ means when “someone is acting in a way that is honest and with expectation that promises will be kept without taking advantage of someone else” (UpCounsel, 2017)
. This exception is not simply based on if the police officer seems to be truthful and honest. It is based on evidence and laws that the police officer is 3
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GOOD FAITH EXCEPTION AND THE EXCLUSIONARY RULE
following. The good faith exception provides a reasonable exception because this allows evidence to still be admissible in court as long as the police officer was acting on good faith when conducting the search. Additionally, the officer needs to be using valid evidence such as an
active warrant to be searching for evidence
(Cornell Law, 2019)
. The courts will look into the way in which the police officer conducted himself throughout the search and investigation to make sure all rules and regulations are being followed. This exception is put into place because it
would be awful if a criminal got away with a crime because a police employee forgot to update the database stating that the warrant was a mistake or is no longer valid. 4
GOOD FAITH EXCEPTION AND THE EXCLUSIONARY RULE
References
Cornell Law. (2019). Good Faith Exception to Exclusionary Rule. Legal Information Institute
.
Oyez. (2018). Exclusionary Rule. United States Cases
.
Schwartzbach, M. (2016). Police Searches and the Good Faith Exception . NOLO
.
UpCounsel. (2017). Good Faith Exception. UpCounsel
.
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