Combating Illegal Searches And Seizures
Oregon’s Constitution, as well as the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, forbids the police from conducting unreasonable searches and seizures.
In many cases, the police are required to obtain a search warrant issued by an impartial judge or magistrate before they can conduct a legal search. In other situations, a warrant is not required, but law enforcement still generally needs probable cause to believe that evidence of a crime will be found.
Litigation of Search and Seizure cases is a major focus of our law office. Back in 1985, Attorney Mark C. Cogan litigated an important Search and Seizure case all the way to the United States Supreme Court. We have litigated countless Search and Seizure cases over the past 3 decades, always striving to protect the Constitutional rights of our clients.
The law on Searches and Seizures has evolved greatly over the years. Appellate cases interpreting our Constitutional right against unreasonable Searches and Seizures number in the tens of thousands. Every case has its own unique facts and circumstances. Modern technology is giving law enforcement agencies tools that they never had before to gather evidence of crime. Recent cases considered by our appellate courts have considered the limits that our Constitution imposes on law enforcement when they employ such technological tools as GPS tracking and infrared imaging in their crime-fighting campaigns.
One recurring problem we see in our law practice is the psychological pressure that law enforcement agents employ in order to persuade suspects to give up their Constitutional rights. If the police are seeking to search your home, you have the right to insist that they have a warrant. If we relinquish our Constitutionally protected freedoms, we might as well not even have these freedoms. In order to safeguard liberty, informed citizens need to know their rights, and be willing to stand up for their rights, even when they are facing pressure to do otherwise.
Any person facing a criminal charge or a potential criminal charge who comes to our law office for legal representation will be assisted by attorneys who are prepared to stand up for our client’s Constitutional freedoms, including the right against illegal Searches and Seizures.