LEG 420

Assignment 1: Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendment Rights

Due Week 4 and worth 150 points

 

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects citizens against police officers making unreasonable searches and seizures of personal property. The Fifth and Sixth Amendments guarantee the procedures that the courts and police must use to ensure fair treatment of persons arrested for crimes.

 

Analyze the following cases in preparation for a systematic approach for a synthesis of law and fact.

 

Review each of the follow cases:

• Katz v. United States, 389 US 347 (1967) located at http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=9210492700696416594&hl=en&as_sdt=2&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr
• Miranda v Arizona (1966) located at http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bin/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=384&invol=436

 

Write an eight to ten (8-10) page paper in which you:

1. Prepare a two to three (2-3) page briefing from one of the two (1-2) cases that you reviewed in which you utilized the following areas of importance: a) issue presented; b) short answer; c) the facts of the case; d) a summary of the case; and e) a conclusion of the case outcome.
2. Examine the importance of the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and determine which amendment offers the greatest protection for defendants in a typical U.S. court case. Justify your position.
3. Explore the overall importance of the Fifth Amendment rights. Suggest key events from the Miranda v Arizona case in which you believe law enforcement had violated the fundamental nature of one’s Fifth Amendment right. Justify your response.
4. Examine three (3) instances in which the Fourth Amendment protects you against unlawful search and seizure. Provide examples of such occurrences to support your response.
5. Discuss the two prong test articulated by the Court which determines the actual nature of a reasonable expectation of privacy. Justify the validity of the test in the courts holding for the Katz v United States case.
6. Analyze whether or not today’s standards allowing government access to all electronic technologies through legislation, like the Uniting and Strengthening America By Providing Appropriate Tools Required To Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T) Act of 2001, have effectively negated the holding in Katz v. United States.
7. Use at least two (2) quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources.

 

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.