We Can't Keep Bending the Fourth Amendment - Sotomayor

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MSimon
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We Can't Keep Bending the Fourth Amendment - Sotomayor

Post by MSimon »

Sotomayor to Justice Department Lawyer: 'We Can't Keep Bending the Fourth Amendment to the Resources of Law Enforcement'

http://reason.com/blog/2015/01/22/sotom ... t-lawyer-w
The Supreme Court heard oral argument yesterday in the Fourth Amendment case Rodriguez v. United States. At issue is whether an officer "unnecessarily prolonged" an otherwise legal traffic stop when he called for backup in order to safely walk a drug-sniffing dog around the stopped vehicle. According to a previous Supreme Court ruling, the use of drug dogs during routine traffic stops poses no constitutional problems so long as the traffic stop is not "prolonged beyond the time reasonably required to complete that mission."

According to Justice Department lawyer Ginger Anders, who argued yesterday in defense of the police, law enforcement is entitled to wide leeway when it comes to determining the amount of time that's "reasonably required" to conduct traffic stops.

But that argument met with strong resistance from several members of the Court, particularly Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Indeed, Sotomayor went so far as to suggest that the Court's recent Fourth Amendment jurisprudence was flying off the rails due to its pro-police deference.
You know where this evisceration of the 4th Amendment started? With Nixon and ramped up on steroids by Reagan and Meese. Ably assisted by the Justices they appointed to the Supreme Court.

And do you know why we have a 4th Amendment? To prevent general searches for contraband.

The Origins Of The Fourth Amendment

Americans used to think such general searches were odious. They didn't like living in a police state. Socialism of course requires a police state.
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