imported post
hunter45 wrote:
nova wrote:
hunter45 wrote:
A student said that his car that was parked in the Rappahanack Deck was searched by Secret Service this morning. "Gunpowder sniffing dogs" alerted the SS to gunpowder residue that they detected in his car. He had no guns or ammunition in his vehicle. I'm surprised they didn't detect anything on my car.
Interesting. No law or GMU policy prohibits ammunition anywhere on campus, only firearms and other defined weapons...
Right, but this was the Secret Service doing stuff in preparation for Obama's visit tomorrow. I'm guessing they can pretty much do whatever they want since it is for the safety of the President?
The USSS is fully aware that many of their searches are blatant violations of the 4th Amendment. They know, but they don't care, and they don't need to care, because they have no intention of pursuing criminal charges. They only want to find the threat and neutralize it until POTUS is out of the area.
Now, for simple folks like us, "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," seems pretty straightforward; it means the government can't search your stuff.
But, the practical application is that your only available remedy for violation is to have any evidence excluded and/or criminal charges dismissed, if they were obtained through a violation of the 4th. In rare cases you might be able to pursue and win a §1983 case, but don't hold your breath on getting a monetary award over an illegal search.
