1. A police officer must have probable cause to arrest an individual. What is probable cause? How much probable cause is needed to secure an arrest or search warrant?

Probable cause is established when a law enforcement official has reason to believe that a crime has occurred. For instance if a police officer pulls over a vehicle for a broken taillight and smells a strong odor of Alcohol. This can be a suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol which is illegal. The patrol officer is required to conduct a field sobriety test and make an arrest. Probable cause is used as a manner of rational upon the totality of circumstances (AMU, 2020). The level of probable cause to secure an arrest occurs in many different levels. One can be the seizure of an illegal weapon that is in possession of an ex-convicted felon. Laws are specifically clear on former felons owning weapons. If this is found it requires an arrest immediately and a search is authorized to find additional illegal items.

Search warrants can be secured if there is probable cause that a specific item needs to be seized in a place. This can also include an arrest warrant for a person who is believed to be either participating or participates in a crime. But warrants are subjected to protecting different privacy interests (Corley, 2016).

1. What is the exclusionary rule? Discuss the exceptions to the exclusionary rule.

The exclusionary rule can be used by a defendant to suppress evidence that was obtained illegally or the evidence was produced by violating their rights. This law was formulated in order to protect defendant’s constitutional rights. In the Mapp v. Ohio case it was determined that the police searched her home illegally. This produced tainted evidence and it violated her freedom of expression (Oyez, 2020). 

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