In a 2012 decision, the Supreme Court evaluated the constitutionality of jail policies that required all inmates, including inmates suspected of minor offenses, to undergo routine strip searches prior to their admission to the general inmate population. Several organizations comprised of jail officials, among others, submitted amicus curiae briefs in which they outlined the risks that accompany the admission of inmates to the general population. Deferring to their judgment and […]

The search-and-seizure provisions of the Fourth Amendment are all about privacy. To honor this freedom, the Fourth Amendment protects against “unreasonable” searches and seizures by state or federal law enforcement authorities. However, law enforcement may override your privacy concerns and conduct a search of you, your home, office, personal or business documents, bank account records, etc. if they have probable cause to believe they can find evidence that you committed […]

Firearms:  Open Carry is Legal in Michigan  Earlier this year Nicholas Looman walked into Aderdeen Elementary School in Grand Rapids, Michigan to vote wearing his holstered pistol on his hip.  The school officials contacted the police, and Mr. Looman was arrested for bringing a firearm into a school.  Later, William Forsythe, the Kent County Prosecutor, issued a statement that Mr. Looman had done nothing illegal because he possessed a valid […]