Case Study 1
Henrietta Snodgrass had been charged with running an illegal gambling ring out of the back of the Sometown Pub. One of the witnesses in her trial, Marge Sampson, Snodgrass’s former associate, had been granted immunity in exchange for her testimony against Snodgrass. In order to build a case against Snodgrass, several people from the Sometown Pub have been informed that they must appear to testify in front of a grand jury. The owner of the bar, as well as the bartenders, wait staff, and door attendants from the Saturday night shift will all have to go to court to make statements about what they knew about the weekly poker game held in the back of Sometown Pub.
The thought of testifying, especially against Henrietta Snodgrass, made everyone at the pub nervous. Jesse Plimpton, the owner of Sometown Pub, was particularly jittery, as he was afraid of testifying about the extent of his knowledge about what was happening in the back room of his pub. He feared that his testimony might incriminate him, and he did not want to be caught up in Henrietta Snodgrass’s downfall. Plimpton had met Snodgrass when the pub was struggling financially. Snodgrass had offered to help him stabilize his finances if he let her use the back room on Saturday nights to run the poker game. He thought that it would just be a friendly game, and he fancied himself the owner of a speakeasy. Over the last year, however, he heard things about Snodgrass’s associates beating up players who owed debts they could not pay. When he said something to Snodgrass, she reminded him that the game was going on in his bar, and he could go to jail for his involvement. Plimpton wished he did not have to go to court, but he had no choice.
Questions
1. How specifically did the assistant district attorney compel Jesse Plimpton and the Saturday night staff of Sometown Pub to testify? What is this a form of?
The assistant district attorney issued subpoenas to Jesse Plimpton and the Saturday night staff of Sometown Pub to compel them to testify before the grand jury. A subpoena is a court order to appear and testify, on penalty of being held in contempt of court and fined or imprisoned. A subpoena is a form of compulsion. Compulsion occurs when information is extracted through the threat of a serious consequence if the information is withheld. In this case, the serious consequence is being held in contempt of court.
2. Can they “plead the Fifth” and refuse to testify? Why or why not?
Jesse Plimpton and his staff cannot “plead the Fifth” and refuse to testify, because the Fifth Amendment right to remain silent only applies to custodial interrogations and to criminal defendants at their own criminal trials. If they received subpoenas, they must appear and testify.
3. What is Jesse Plimpton’s degree of Fifth Amendment protection while testifying before the grand jury?
While Jesse Plimpton cannot refuse to appear before the grand jury and make himself available for questioning, he does not have to reveal information, and he may invoke the Fifth Amendment and refuse to answer. To be regarded as incriminating, the answer need not exhibit guilt outright. He would not need to explain what it is about the answer that would be incriminating. The Supreme Court has indicated that claims of privilege should be honored unless there is no rational basis for believing that a truthful answer to the question could be incriminating. If the judge erroneously instructs the witness to answer, the witness’s testimony has been compelled and cannot be used against him or her in subsequent criminal proceedings.
Case Study 2
Sylvia Packer was on trial for stealing an antique vase from the Sometown Antique Shoppe. Police officers had obtained an illegal confession from her by questioning her after she had been indicted by a grand jury and not obtaining a waiver of her Sixth Amendment right to counsel. Despite the inadmissible confession, the prosecution had enough physical evidence from the scene of the crime and from eyewitness testimony to proceed to trial. The assistant district attorney had called witness after witness who identified Packer as the thief, even though Packer had been wearing a mask at the time of the robbery. The assistant district attorney also presented video evidence, showing someone who matched Packer’s description leaving the store with the vase.
When it came time for the defense to make its case, Packer exercised her right against self-incrimination and did not take the stand. Instead, the defense called expert witnesses who questioned the fingerprints left at the scene, saying that Packer was a frequent customer of the Sometown Antique Shoppe and that her fingerprints could have been left there when she was a customer. Another expert witness examined the video footage from the incident and said that the footage did not prove conclusively that Packer was the thief. Packer was of average weight and height, and though police had found clothes at Packer’s apartment that match those seen in the footage, the clothes were nondescript enough to be inconclusive. When the time came for closing arguments, the assistant district attorney called attention to Packer’s refusal to testify as further proof of her guilt.
Questions
1. Did the assistant district attorney violate Sylvia Packer’s Fifth Amendment rights when she called attention to Packer’s refusal to testify? Why or why not?
Yes, the assistant district attorney did violate Packer’s Fifth Amendment rights. Defendants are protected from adverse consequences of exercising their privilege against self-incrimination at their criminal trials. Neither the judge nor the prosecution is allowed to call attention to the fact that the defendant failed to take the witness stand and testify on his or her behalf and use it as evidence of guilt.
2. If defendants did not have this protection, what would be the result?
If defendants were penalized for exercising their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, then the protection would be essentially meaningless.
3. When does the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination apply? When does it not apply?
Defendants are protected at their criminal trials. The right does not apply in civil proceedings, parole revocation hearings, police disciplinary actions, or other proceedings.
Case Study 3
George Fisher is on trial for kidnapping. The prosecutor played a taped telephone call made by the kidnapper to the victim’s mother at George’s trial. He then called George to the witness stand and asked him to repeat the words spoken by the kidnapper so that the jurors could compare the voices and decide whether the defendant was the person who made the call.
Questions
1. Can George’s attorney object under the Fifth Amendment?
No. The prosecutor cannot force George to take the witness stand and testify at his trial, but that’s not why George was called. The prosecutor did not ask George to reveal anything he knew (i.e., testify). Instead he asked him to exhibit his voice characteristics so that jurors could make a comparison. Compulsion to exhibit voice characteristics involves physical evidence.
Protection against the government’s use of George’s body as a source of physical evidence derives from the Fourth Amendment. The Fourth Amendment protects three interests—freedom of movement, bodily privacy, and bodily integrity. None of these interests are implicated here. George is already present at the trial so the government does not have to seize him to get this evidence. Since George has no privacy interest in his voice characteristics, the prosecutor can compel him to exhibit them for the jury.
Case Study 4
Sometown Police Officer Grendell arrested Jason Southerland for driving under the influence late Saturday night. Southerland was driving erratically down Broadway, and Officer Grendell pulled him over. When asking Southerland for his license and registration, Officer Grendell smelled alcohol on Southerland’s breath and observed that his eyes were bloodshot. Officer Grendell asked Southerland to step out of the car and then conducted a field sobriety test. Southerland failed the test, as he could not walk a straight line or recite the alphabet with his finger on his nose. After Southerland failed the test, Officer Grendell placed him under arrest and took him to the police station.
Normally, the Sometown Police tested DUI suspects using a Breathalyzer machine, as it is the least invasive procedure to determine intoxication. However, the machine broke the week prior and was out for repairs until Monday. As a backup measure for such eventualities, the Sometown Police Department contracted a physician, Dr. Gagnon, to perform blood draws to test for intoxication. Officer Grendell contacted Gagnon, who came in to perform the test. Gagnon used standard blood drawing equipment to obtain a blood sample from Southerland for testing. The blood then was sent to a lab for processing. Officer Grendell did not obtain a warrant to draw blood from Southerland prior to having Gagnon administer the test.
When the test came back, it showed that Southerland’s blood alcohol levels were at almost twice the legal limit. Southerland was charged with drunk driving and later convicted at Sometown District Court.
Questions
1. Was drawing Jason Southerland’s blood without a warrant constitutional? Why or why not? Which amendment applies here?
Yes, drawing blood to test for intoxication is permissible under the Fourth Amendment. Although most invasive procedures to obtain bodily evidence require a warrant, under the exigent circumstances exception, police do not need to obtain one to perform a test for intoxication. Because the presence of alcohol in the blood begins to decrease rapidly after drinking stops, police officers must take immediate action to preserve evidence.
2. What Supreme Court decision governs this practice? What was the Court’s reasoning?
In Schmerber v. California, the Supreme Court established a framework for searches below the surface of the body that would satisfy the Fourth Amendment standards of reasonableness. Four factors must be considered: (1) the reasonableness of compelling the suspect to submit to the procedure; (2) the probability that the desired evidence will be found; (3) whether a search warrant is obtained; and (4) whether the procedure is reasonable and is performed in a reasonable manner.
In Schmerber, the court determined that drawing blood to test for intoxication without a warrant was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment. The first two factors are satisfied easily. In the case of Southerland’s arrest, Officer Grendell smelled alcohol on Southerland’s breath when he pulled him over, and Southerland failed a field sobriety test. Because police need to act quickly to preserve evidence, it is reasonable to not wait for a search warrant. Blood draws are routine procedures that carry almost no risk and cause almost no pain.
3. Unless confronted with an emergency, for what types of bodily searches should officers obtain a warrant before having them performed on a suspect?
Officers should obtain a warrant for procedures that: (1) involve taking bodily tissues or fluids, (2) penetrate the surface of the body, (3) require manual probing of rectal or genital cavities, (4) involve significant pain or physical discomfort, (5) are dangerous to health, or (6) are extremely degrading or humiliating.
Case Study 5
Harvey Simon was suspected of a brutal rape. The victim had been found, beaten and bloody, in the alleyway near a popular night spot. She had required emergency surgery, but was expected to make a full physical recovery.
Upon investigating the crime, police found several eyewitnesses who placed Simon at the same bar as the victim the night of the incident. One witness testified that she had seen the victim leave with Simon. It appeared to the witness that she left under duress. Simon had held her firmly by the arm and was walking behind her. According to the witness, the victim looked as though she was trying to remain calm, but was visibly terrified. The witness expressed guilt about not doing more to help her.
When the victim awoke after surgery, police questioned her in her hospital room. Although she was in shock from the realization of what had happened to her, the victim was able to identify Simon as her assailant. In addition to the surgery, doctors performed a rape kit procedure. However, because Simon’s DNA was not in the system, they did not have a match for the DNA. Police would need to obtain a pubic hair and semen sample from Simon in order to confirm him as the rapist.
Using the testimony from the victim and the witnesses, officers obtained a search warrant to compel Simon to provide the evidence. Simon was ordered to appear at a doctor’s office to provide the samples. When the evidence was analyzed, Simon was arrested for the rape. He was tried, convicted, and sent to prison.
Questions
1. Why did police obtain a warrant before obtaining the samples from Simon?
Unless delaying the procedure will result in the destruction of evidence, police are required to obtain a search warrant before obtaining bodily evidence that requires a highly intrusive bodily search.
2. Is grounds for arrest enough to justify invasive bodily searches? Why or why not?
No, grounds for arrest is not enough. Highly intrusive bodily searches are generally allowed only when: (1) the government’s need for the evidence exceeds the intrusion into the suspect’s privacy or bodily integrity necessary to retrieve it; (2) there is a clear indication that the desired evidence will be found; (3) a search warrant is obtained (or is excused due to exigent circumstances); and (4) the procedure used to retrieve the evidence is reasonable and is performed in a reasonable manner.
3. In the case of Harvey Simon, how did police meet the criteria required for the search performed?
The government’s need for evidence to establish conclusive guilt of the rape outweighed Simon’s privacy and bodily integrity. Given the testimony from the victim and the witnesses, there was clear indication that the DNA would match that from the rape kit. The police obtained a search warrant to perform the search. The search was performed by a doctor and in a reasonable manner.