Author ORCID Identifier

Kay Levine 0000-0002-9422-232X

Jenia Turner 0000-0001-8474-9171

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2016

Keywords

Evidence gathering, Evidence laundering, Fragmented policing, Exclusionary rule, Multi-officer situation, Fourth Amendment, Good faith exception

Abstract

The Supreme Court’s decision in Herring v. United States authorizes police to defeat the Fourth Amendment’s protections through a process we call evidence laundering. Evidence laundering occurs when one police officer makes a constitutional mistake when gathering evidence and then passes that evidence along to a second officer, who develops it further and then delivers it to prosecutors for use in a criminal case. The original constitutional taint disappears in the wash.

Courts have allowed evidence laundering in a variety of contexts, from cases involving flawed databases to cases stemming from faulty judgments and communication lapses in law enforcement teams. Courts typically zero in on individual officer behavior, or limit their review to a single incident, rather than considering the entire course of conduct. In so doing, they make visible the individualistic view of police work that is implicit in much of Fourth Amendment doctrine. This atomistic perspective, however, fails to appreciate the realities of modern policing, which depends heavily on teamwork and delegation. At the same time, the increased emphasis on police intentions and on balancing the costs and benefits of exclusion brings our courts into closer alignment with courts elsewhere in the world.

First Page

627

Publication Title

Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology

Download

Share

COinS