Fourth Amendment Requirement Electronic Searches
Instruction: Please be advised this assignment is about the 4th amendment.
You are required to give complete word-processed (preferably Times New Roman 12 size font) answers to all parts of each of the two questions posted. Remember to copy/paste your answer into the answer field and e-mail me a word-processed copy by the deadline indicated. Your answers should be as brief as is compatible with answering the entire question and should total approximately 4-6 single-spaced pages in Word. Please remember to read each scenario at least twice, spot the issues, and make an outline of what you will say before you start putting it into essay format. The most important things are to answer the questions posed and to give reasons for your conclusions as well as spotting as many relevant issues as possible. In answering each question, be sure to explain the answer in your own words and apply all relevant provisions of the Federal and State Statutes and all relevant parts of the cases and other materials read for class. If more facts than those provided are needed to answer a question, briefly describe the additional facts and show how they affect the answer.
Fourth Amendment Requirement Electronic Searches
This is not intended as a research paper, and you are not required to rely on any sources other than the cases and federal and state statutes read for class and class slides. Citations should be in the body of the paper, rather than in footnotes, and should consist of the name of the case in underlined format from which the brief quote comes (e.g. the United States v. Jeronimo-Bautista). Title pages and bibliographies are not needed, but please put your name, class section, semester and which exam this is on the first page and page numbers at the bottom of each page of your word-processed version. Please also put the correct number of the question next to the relevant answer.
Fourth Amendment Requirement Electronic Searches
Do not copy the questions/facts onto your answer sheet. You may briefly cite specific facts from the fact pattern where necessary to explain your answer. DO NOT copy entire statutes or sections unless absolutely necessary. Simply cite to the relevant section (e.g. 18 USC ß1030 (a)(5)(C) or Fourth Amendment) and explain in your own words why the specific section is relevant. DO try to have someone proofread the paper and/or go to the writing center. This is a graduate level course and I do not expect to have to decipher what you are trying to say in a midterm exam that you had two weeks to complete!
***Additional details from the professor
Everything you need to know has been provided to you in class, slides, and cases. Just because we did not study a case re kidnapping does not mean that you cannot use your common sense (as well as the fact that I used kidnapping as an example in class) to support your arguments for the first question!
2) Generally, use common sense and do not feel so constrained by the literal language of the cases and text. Be creative. That is the POINT of this exam. So long as your arguments make sense and are based on the law and correctly apply/cite to precedent, you can definitely use your common sense to extrapolate, hypothesize, etc. That is what I WANT you to do!
3) READ THE FACTS CAREFULLY! And at least a few times! They are NOT meant to trick you so don’t overthink each little thing, but do pay attention to the wording because it will affect your analysis.
See the essay questions below:
Fourth Amendment Requirement Electronic Searches Essay questions
QUESTION 1
During roua tine patrol, Officers Smart and Sharp receive notification that a 10-year-old girl has been kidnapped. The vehicle that was potentially used in the kidnapping is described as a 2014 silver Honda Civic 4-door sedan. The Officers notice a car matching the description parked in front of a 7-11. They wait for the operator to return to the vehicle and when he does, they ask him a few questions which raises their suspicion. Based on the officerís level of suspicion, they decide to detain the operator of the vehicle, Alek Kidman. Alek and the vehicle are then searched. The Officers do not find anything suspicious in the vehicle and on Alek himself. They ask him to unlock his iPhone which he refuses to do. They also ask if they can search his home which he also refuses. In the meantime, one of the officers dispatches another unit to go to Alekís home and see if they can search it. When the second unit arrives at Alekís home, an elderly gentleman opens the door and says that he is Alekís father. The Officers ask if they can search the home and Alekís computer and the father consents. The father shows the Officers where Alekís room is and where he keeps his electronic devices. Officers use a program similar to EnCase to search through the computer bypassing any security measures (such as a password) and discover hundreds if not thousands of images of Child Pornography (CP) depicting little girls in sexually suggestive positions. The Officers conducting the search immediately image the computer they searched and seize it by taking the copy with them. They also conduct a physical search of the home to see if there is any evidence of the missing child but find nothing. The officers do notice a couple of other laptops around the home, but since they are not in Alekís room, they decide not to touch them. They dispatch their findings to the unit holding Alek at which point the Officers arrest Alek and take him back to the precinct. Officer Sharp calls the district attorney who instructs the Officer to attempt to break into Alekís phone to see if they can trace his whereabouts throughout the day while she tries to get a warrant. The Officers bring the phone to the station where the forensic unit is able to trace all of the activity and Alekís location throughout the day. Based on this information, the Officers dispatch units to various locations and the little girl is found at one of the locations, locked in an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city. However, she has no recollection of what her kidnaper looked like and cannot identify Alek. Nevertheless, Alek is indicted on kidnapping and CP charges. Alek moves to suppress all evidence obtained from his home and his phone.
Based on what you learned in class, what are the relevant issues here and how would they be approached and resolved? Remember to explain arguments that both the defense and the government may present as well as any relevant defenses.
Fourth Amendment Requirement Electronic Searches QUESTION 2
Based on everything the officers discovered on Alekís computer at his home, they obtain a warrant to search the copy (image) of the computer they obtained for evidence of CP and the warrant is issued. As the forensic investigators are searching through Alekís computer for evidence of CP, however, they find documents and communications indicating that Alek was involved in a child sex trafficking ring that the FBI has been trying to locate for years. The police officers immediately alert the FBI and the FBI takes over the investigation. The FBI obtains a warrant to search for and seize all electronic devices from Alekís home, including any cellular/smart phones and search those devices for any evidence of minor sex trafficking activities. The warrant is executed, and all electronic devices are seized from Alekís home and searched. Throughout the search it becomes evident that Alek was a very small fish in the operation. In fact, this was the first kidnapping he attempted to prove himself as a dedicated member so he can get more responsibilities. Additionally, most of the communications and information is written in code that no one other than Alek can understand. The FBI decide to strike a deal with Alek whereby if he cooperates and helps them bring in the actual leaders of the ring, he will get a more lenient sentence. Alek agrees and enters into an Agreement with the FBI that provides for him to be brought from his detention into the FBI offices and use his computer to decode the information in his messages and attempt to contact the ring leaders. During one such visit, Agent Sneaky notices that Alek writes down some letters as he is reading the encoded message on the screen. He then combines letters in a certain way that makes the message readable. Agent Sneaky continues to observe what Alek writes down based on whatís on the screen and eventually figures out how to decode the messages. The FBI are then able to go through all of the messages and decode them without Alekís help. The information leads the FBI to conclude that one of the main leaders of the operation is John Malvado. Since they are not 100 % positive, the FBI decides not to put out any information for the apprehension of Mr. Malvado but investigate his background in the meantime. One of the things they find is that Mr. Malvado is a convicted sexual offender although the charge is about 15 years old. Coincidentally, as Mr. Malvado is being investigated, he is entering the country from Mexico at the US/Mexico border in California. Mr. Malvado is traveling with his wife and 3 children…
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
