The Death Of The 4th Amendment

It has finally happened! After years of chipping away at our 4^th Amendment rights, a court in Indiana has finally admitted the truth with a 3/2 ruling that simply stated, the people of Indiana have no legal right to prevent government agents from entering their home at will. The ruling was the result of a case where the police entered an apartment after following a couple that indicated that they needed no further assistance from the police. The husband protested and after being moved aside by the police, he defended himself by pushing aside the police officer against a wall to prevent his further entry into the home. The officer’s partner then used his taser to subdue the husband whom then taken into custody for assault upon a police officer. In this ruling the court indicated that the previous standards by which officers could enter a home without a warrant were no longer valid and in the interests of public safety and modern interpretation of our 4^th Amendment rights the use of home owner consent or exigent circumstances we no longer needed. The court also indicated that any individual who felt they were wronged still had the option of a civil suit against the officer, but that individual’s ability to reasonably resist the intrusion by government officials were against good government policy.

The 4^th Amendment states that:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

For those of use who believe that we have rights / responsibilities as citizens of this nation, the ruling is nothing short of shocking, but not entirely unexpected. For years, we have been seeing the power of our police and government in general grows as our own desires as a nation to exert our personal freedoms wane. The government now mandates where and how we educate our children, who will be allowed to freely travel, (see new passport restrictions), own weapons as well as what types of weapons and if we can even carry them, what types of food we may consume, (see raw milk raids on the Amish), etc. Yet through it all, we have lived with the illusion that we were still able to keep the government from intruding in our homes without just cause. We have kept that illusion alive despite strong evidence to the contrary.

In the year 2006 police killed a 92-year-old woman by the name of Kathryn Johnston as she defended herself as they broke into her home with a falsified no knock warrant. The police at the time fired a total of 39 shots to Ms. Johnston’s single shot. She never had a chance. The police were later charged, but the worst offender only received 10 years.

Or would you rather take the situation where if the police detain you, they no longer need a warrant to search your phone or car. They simply let you go within 72 hours and everything is considered to be kosher by the courts. In fact, it was recently reported that the Michigan police now download your cell phone data during traffic stops. The police argue that they only download the information in criminal cases or with the owner’s consent. How can you consent when you have been detained by a police officer during a traffic stop? Never the less, it has become apparent that we are rapidly becoming a nation of people who would rather live on their knees than risk dying on their feet.

Enjoy!