The United States Constitution affords all people certain rights. The Fifth Amendment states that we have the right against self incrimination. The Fourth Amendment protects us from unreasonable search or seizure. People have the right to confront witnesses and accusers. Nothing can change these rights unless the U.S. constitutions were to be rewritten and that is not likely to happen. In this paper we will be examining the Fourth Amendment, learning the requirements for obtaining a search warrant, defining probable cause, describing when search and seizure does not require a warrant. We will also explain the rationale for allowing warrantless searches, examine the persuasiveness of these reasons, and determine if probable cause is always …show more content…

Searches not requiring a warrant include consent searches, searches incident to arrest, searches during an investigative detention, vehicle searches, border searches, “open field searches”, plain view searches, and searches of schools, office buildings, jails, or prisons. Plain view searches are just what it says it means the police officers must use their senses of sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. For example the police approach a parked vehicle if even just to inquire as to your reason for being parked where you are and upon approaching the vehicle they smell a strong odor of drugs this gives the officer cause enough to search the vehicle and its contents including anybody in the vehicle. Another example of this would be in a routine traffic stop when ask to provide registration and proof of insurance the people in the vehicle open the glove box and the police officer observes what looks like drugs or a gun this then gives the officer the right to search the vehicle, its contents, and its occupants. Another form of a warrantless search is what is known as an open field search. An example of an open field search would be a garbage can placed out at the curb for garbage pickup this can therefore be searched without the need of a search warrant. However if the same garbage can was on someone’s porch then a search warrant would be necessary. This is because once the trash is placed at the road the