MTA Constitutional Rights 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The Fourth Amendment's particularity requirement means a warrant must:
- Describe with specificity the place to be searched and persons or things to be seized (Correct answer)
- List every room in a building to be searched
- Name all potential suspects who may be on the premises
- Be signed by a senior officer in addition to a judge
Correct answer: Describe with specificity the place to be searched and persons or things to be seized
The particularity requirement prevents general warrants by requiring precise description of the search location and items sought.
Question 2: When is a 'knock and announce' requirement for executing a search warrant satisfied?
- Officers announce their presence and authority and wait a reasonable time before forced entry (Correct answer)
- Officers knock once and may immediately enter
- Officers are required to knock only at the front door of a residence
- Officers must wait a minimum of five minutes before forced entry in all circumstances
Correct answer: Officers announce their presence and authority and wait a reasonable time before forced entry
The knock-and-announce rule requires identification and a reasonable wait time, but what is reasonable depends on the circumstances.
Question 3: Which scenario represents a valid 'consent search' that does not require a warrant?
- A homeowner voluntarily and freely allows officers to search the living room without coercion (Correct answer)
- An officer threatens arrest unless the suspect agrees to a search
- A landlord consents to search a tenant's apartment without the tenant's knowledge
- A passenger consents to search of the driver's locked glove compartment
Correct answer: A homeowner voluntarily and freely allows officers to search the living room without coercion
Consent must be freely and voluntarily given by someone with authority over the area; coercion or lack of actual authority invalidates consent.
Question 4: The Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause extended most Bill of Rights protections to the states through a process called:
- Selective incorporation (Correct answer)
- Total incorporation
- Federalism
- Substantive due process
Correct answer: Selective incorporation
Selective incorporation applies specific Bill of Rights provisions to the states on a case-by-case basis through the Fourteenth Amendment.
Question 5: An officer conducting a pat-down frisk after a valid Terry stop may seize an object if:
- The officer immediately recognizes the object as contraband by touch alone (Correct answer)
- Any object of any shape is felt during the pat-down
- The object could possibly be a weapon of any kind
- The officer removes and examines the object to determine if it is contraband
Correct answer: The officer immediately recognizes the object as contraband by touch alone
Minnesota v. Dickerson's 'plain feel' doctrine allows seizure only if the contraband nature is immediately apparent without further manipulation.
Question 6: Which type of lineup procedure has been found most susceptible to eyewitness misidentification?
- A simultaneous lineup where the witness views all suspects at the same time (Correct answer)
- A sequential lineup where the witness views one person at a time
- A photo array presented by a blind administrator
- A voice lineup recorded in advance
Correct answer: A simultaneous lineup where the witness views all suspects at the same time
Simultaneous lineups encourage relative judgments ('who looks most like the perpetrator') rather than absolute judgments, increasing misidentification risk.
Question 7: The Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment guarantees a defendant the right to:
- Cross-examine witnesses who testify against them at trial (Correct answer)
- Face the accuser during the initial arrest
- Know the identities of all confidential informants used in the investigation
- Confront the arresting officer at every pre-trial hearing
Correct answer: Cross-examine witnesses who testify against them at trial
The Confrontation Clause, strengthened by Crawford v. Washington, guarantees defendants the right to cross-examine live adverse witnesses.
MTA Constitutional Rights 4
The Fourth Amendment's particularity requirement means a warrant must: