POLS 4720 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Motor Vehicle Exception
5 May 2018
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He found a passion for civil rights and that led him to attend Yale Law School to pursue a career
in law. After graduating from one of the most prestigious law schools, he worked as a legal
assistant and was quickly appointed the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights in the U.S
Department of Education. After serving at the Equal Employment Opportunity Center, Thomas
was appointed to the U.S Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia circuit. After being
accused of sexual harassment by a former employee, he went through a rigorous round of
hearings, but was eventually narrowly confirmed in 1991.1
As one of the nine justices voting on the decision of Collins v. Virginia, Justice Thomas will
contribute to the issue of the automobile exception and private property. Collins v Virginia is a
Fourth Amendment case that brings private property and the automobile exception into question.
In this case, the police were in pursuit of a very unique looking motorcycle which had escaped
the police on two separate occasions for traffic violations. On the second occasion, the officer
was able to take a photograph of the license plate. After running the plates from the photograph,
the officers discovered that the plates had been registered to Eric Jones. When the officers
questioned Jones, they learned that he had sold the motorcycle to Ryan Collins a few years back.
The officers conducted an investigation of Collin’s Facebook page and discovered pictures of
Collins with the same stole motorcycle. After investigating the home address of the suspected
driver, a police officer saw a motorcycle covered by a tarp in the driveway of the house. From
the parts of the motorcycle that was visible, the officer determined that it was most likely the
same motorcycle that was in pursuit. The officer, with probable cause, walked to the driveway
and uncovered the tarp. After confirming that the covered motorcycle was the one that was in
pursuit and was also stolen, the officer waited for the suspect to return home and then he
1 Clarence Thomas.” Oyez, Accessed 5 Apr, 2018, www.oyez/justices/clarence_thomas.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
He found a passion for civil rights and that led him to attend yale law school to pursue a career in law. After graduating from one of the most prestigious law schools, he worked as a legal assistant and was quickly appointed the assistant secretary for civil rights in the u. s. After serving at the equal employment opportunity center, thomas was appointed to the u. s court of appeals for the district of columbia circuit. After being accused of sexual harassment by a former employee, he went through a rigorous round of hearings, but was eventually narrowly confirmed in 1991. 1. As one of the nine justices voting on the decision of collins v. virginia, justice thomas will contribute to the issue of the automobile exception and private property. Fourth amendment case that brings private property and the automobile exception into question.
