تسجيل الدخول

تسجيل

Search and Seizure

المؤلف:  Max M. Houck، Jay A. Siegel

المصدر:  Fundamentals of Forensic Science

الجزء والصفحة:  p625-626

2026-09-08

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Search and Seizure

The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution states:

This Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures. What actually constitutes an unreasonable search or seizure has been the subject of numerous court decisions during the past 200 years. The Supreme Court has held that the Constitution expresses a clear preference for searches con ducted only after judicial authorization, that is, after a search warrant has been obtained. It is also true, however, that the courts have carved out many exceptions to the Fourth Amendment and there are many times when warrantless searches are permitted. The authority to search for and seize also may be limited by other laws enacted by Congress and state legislatures. There may be times when forensic scientists are called upon to attend crime scenes and help in the collection of physical evidence. They should understand the legal limitations on this collection process so as to avoid improper seizure of important evidence. There are numerous instances where evidence has been collected and analyzed and shown to be highly important in the prosecution of the defendant, only to be stricken because the evidence collector ran afoul of the prohibition against unreasonable searches. If there is any question about the reasonableness of a search or seizure, a search warrant should be obtained. This is the responsibility of the criminal investigators and the prosecutor.