Warrantless Searches and the 4th Amendment

Jul 16th, 2012
By: T F Stern

NoisyRoom.net:

T F Stern’s Rantings

Your home is your castle, a place you and your family are safe from the evils of the world as well as government intrusion, unwarranted searches and seizures of property. Unwarranted searches were listed as grievances against the King of England when we declared our independence. It was important enough to be included in the Bill of Rights to prevent our own government from ever violating this sacred trust.

“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.”

The Department of Homeland Security has never received their copy of the 4th Amendment or have chosen to disregard it as they go about violating the scope and intent of this clearly stated principle of liberty. Reminding TSA goons of this American principle can get you arrested and detained if you happen to be at an airport.

More recently, in a case of mistaken identity it got a Florida resident killed simply because the police apparently stormed the wrong house while looking for a felon suspect according to an NBCNEWS.com story. The news story made a big deal out of reports that police never identified themselves when they knocked on the door; but was that really the issue? At 1:30 AM, if someone knocks on my door they’d be looking down the barrel of my pistol; during the daytime hours that same gun would be hidden in the small of my back for easy access should the need arise.

“When we knocked on the door, the door opened and the occupant of that apartment was pointing a gun at deputies and that’s when we opened fire and killed him,” Lt. John Herrell said.”

How come police didn’t obtain a warrant prior to knocking on the door or, for that matter, approaching the residence? There were sufficient officers at the scene to ensure the felony suspect wasn’t going anywhere. From what was reported, they had probable cause to believe the suspect was hiding inside that residence; certainly enough to obtain a warrant signed by a judge regardless of the hour.

Nothing will bring the dead man back to life, this was a tragic event. Please don’t read anything into this appraisal of a situation which I was not witness to or take this as prejudging the police without sufficient evidence; their statement validates what I’ve printed and any criminal or civil litigation which follows would require the same standard of proof as any other case.

My purpose for writing is a bit more involved; police and other government representatives, are required to obtain a warrant prior to stopping and/or detaining an individual unless circumstances make it impossible. The same requirements hold true for entering the property of an individual; government officers are specifically prohibited from violating the God-given right to be safe within the confines of his/her house without a warrant obtained with specific probable cause before a judge.

There are many in positions of authority among us, elected or appointed, who don’t agree with this part of our contract with government. They see themselves as protectors of society with the attitude of, “What ever it takes to keep folks safe… that’s good enough.”

President Obama, frustrated by his inability to implement progressive changes to our way of life, has run into road blocks initiated by our founders, a means of slowing down government to prevent radical changes. Change requires agreement between a divided Congress, a divided Senate and the executive branch of government. In this way individual liberties are safe guarded from irrational torch bearers. It should alarm most citizens when they hear Obama’s inflammatory slogan, issued October 24, 2011 and posted to the official White House web site, “We Can’t Wait.”

“Without a doubt, the most urgent challenge that we face right now is getting our economy to grow faster and to create more jobs…. we can’t wait for an increasingly dysfunctional Congress to do its job. Where they won’t act, I will.”

In plain English, “To hell with the Constitution. We don’t need no stinkin’ Congress; I know what needs to be done!” Every Executive Order Obama signs validates this concern.

The Obama administration also feels the same way about the 2nd Amendment protecting an individual’s God-given right to own and bear arms. Hillary Clinton is Obama’s “point man” working with the U.N. to get the Small Arms Treaty ratified. The Senate is scheduled to vote on this important issue July 27th. The purpose of the treaty is to strip the guts out of the 2nd Amendment by turning sovereign powers over to the United Nations. The treaty will restrict gun ownership as well as the ability to purchase and maintain ammunition for those weapons; but other than that, there’s no conflict with the intent our founding fathers had in mind when these issues were penned.

What’s going to happen when government goons, be they local, state or federal police; or worse, United Nations peace keeping forces come knocking at your door to confiscate your pistols, rifles, shotguns and all the ammunition or reloading equipment in your house? Will Senate ratification of the U.N. Small Arms Treaty destroy the Castle Doctrine, your safe haven from unwarranted search and seizure? How many Americans will have the tenacity required to stand tall and deny armed goons from storming in and doing as they please? Those who do will either be arrested for obstructing justice, disorderly conduct, assaulting an officer or simply shot for presenting a danger to those officers.

Let our eyes be opened; may we be awakened from the mind numbing sleep which has permitted evil men to be elected, to represent our interests and protect our God-given inalienable rights. We are moving, propelled if you will, “Forward” towards Obama’s vision of “Hope and Change,” his skirting constitutional restraints on the executive branch as he shouts, “We Can’t Wait!” all the while issuing executive orders one after the other.

Wouldn’t We The People be better off restoring individual Constitutional protections damaged through intentional casuistry, as my friend Al would put it? When our government resorts to deceit and chicanery, it’s time to flush them out and put in new guards; November is fast approaching… choose well.

This article has been cross-posted to The Moral Liberal, a publication whose banner reads, “Defending The Judeo-Christian Ethic, Limited Government & The American Constitution.”