Understanding the Development of Laws: A Case Study on the Fourth Amendment, Study notes of Law

Download Understanding the Development of Laws: A Case Study on the Fourth Amendment and more Study notes Law in PDF only on Docsity! I. GOALS: A. Introduce students to the ways in which laws are created. B. Familiarize students with new type of group work. C. Build off of last week’s enthusiasm. II. OBJECTIVES A. Knowledge Objectives-As a result of this class, students will be better able to: 1. Define case law and statutory law. 2. Understand how case law is created and how it develops over time. 3. Explore some of the difficulties associated with drafting statutes. B. Skills Objectives: As a result of this class, students will be better able to: 1. Work effectively in groups. 2. Explain the reasoning behind their decisions. C. Attitude Objectives 1. Students will maintain their level of enthusiasm from last week. III. MATERIALS Daily Handout Powerpoint Presentation IV. METHOD I. Do Now: a. Write down two laws that you think are good laws. After you think of two good laws, try to think of any laws that you might disagree with, or that you think are bad. i. Discuss: 1. What makes a law good or bad? a. Is it the source of the law (as in the values we discussed last week)?; b. Is it the purpose of the law?; c. Is it the clarity of the law?; etc. 2. Where do you think these laws come from? a. Who are they created by? b. Are they written down? Where? II. Methods by which laws are created a. Laws are primarily created through two different methods: case law and statutory law i. Define statutory law: 1. Written laws that are created and passed by a legislature on the state or federal level. a. EX: In Washington we have the RCW’s, and national government has the U.S.C. ii. Define case law: 1. Law that is based on judicial decision and precedent. Docsity.com a. Courts decide the law applicable to a case by interpreting statutes and applying precedents which record how and why prior cases have been decided. b. Example of the development of case law using the 4th Amendment’s warrant requirement as an example. (Emphasize that this is a very simplified version of the 4th Amendment and that we will be talking about it in more detail later in the quarter.) i. Show students the text of the Fourth Amendment: 1. 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. a. Basic idea that we’ll be working with today is simply that it is unreasonable for the government to search a place or seize a person or things without a warrant. i. Acknowledge again that this is a massive simplification, but emphasize that it will help us with the concept. ii. Introduce series of cases that show the Court’s development of a few of the exceptions to the warrant requirement: consent, plain view, immediately after an arrest, or under exigent circumstances. 1. Watson was suspected of having stolen credit cards. The police searched him and found no cards. They then asked him if they could search his car. He said “Go ahead,” and the officer’s found two stolen credit cards under the floor mat. He was convicted and sent to jail. a. This demonstrates the consent exception to the warrant requirement. 2. An armed robber entered the offices of a taxi company, stole $363, and ran. Tow taxi drivers who heard shouts of “holdup,” followed the robber to 2111 Cocoa Lane. Police proceeded to the house and were let in by a woman. Officers spread out through the house and found Hayden upstairs pretending to sleep. He was arrested and convicted. a. This demonstrates the exigent circumstances exception to the warrant requirement. 3. During the middle of the night a gas station was robbed at gunpoint. Witnesses saw a blue station wagon leaving the gas station with four men inside, one in a green sweater and one in a trench coat. Police found the station wagon about an hour later and observed two men matching the description inside. Chambers was arrested and the car was Docsity.com Definitions: The Creation of Laws Statutory law: Case law: Mini-Activity: We’re going to work as a class to trace the development of case law as it relates to the Fourth Amendment. Basic idea behind the 4th Amendment: Case # 1: Watson’s Car Exception recognized: Case # 2: Cocoa Lane Exception recognized: Docsity.com Case # 3: Gas Station Exception recognized: Case # 4: Horton’s Rings Exception recognized: Activity – No Vehicles in the Park: You guys are now going to be the judges for a few cases. Think about and discuss each of the scenarios provided, and then come to a decision as to whether or not you think that the conviction should stand. Be prepared to explain your answers and your reasoning. Case: Decision: Reasoning: State v. Smith State v. Stodd State v. Edwards State v. Budd State v. Karlberg State v. Wadsworth: Docsity.com No Vehicles in the Park – Scenarios State v. Smith: John Smith – a government lawyer – lives on one side of town and works on the other side. To avoid being late for an important meeting, he drives his Honda Accord through the park on a paved street. A police officer arrests him and he is tried and convicted for violating the city’s law. State v. Stodd: Stevie Stodd, a 3-year old child, “drives” a non-motorized toy car that his father gave him into the park. A police officer arrests young Stevie. He is tried and convicted for violating the city’s law State v. Edwards: A bee stings Sally, a little girl who is playing in the park. She has a life- threatening allergic reaction. Her father uses his cell-phone to call an ambulance. The ambulance arrives and very carefully enters the park to save sally. A police officer arrests the ambulance driver, Mary Edwards. She is tried and convicted for violating the city’s law. Docsity.com