The Right of Privacy - Research Paper Example

Sur Lecturer: The Right of Privacy The right of privacy is a human en ment safeguarded by both sta y and common law andhas been contingent to the constitution of America. It has expanded to a freedom of personal independent safeguarded by the fourteenth amendment (Warren 22). The Right of Privacy is accepted by all constitutions of both federal and state governments. The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on civil and Political Rights as well as other international and regional treaties also recognize this right.

However in the United States Constitution does not unequivocally recognize this fundamental right. The motive of makers of the American constitution by avoiding to directly put an article that safeguard the right of privacy was a genuine one. If such like an article would have been inserted in the constitution then it would have been very difficult to protect the general public against individuals or groups that are a threat to the security of the country. The law therefore eliminates cases of people going to court to get court orders to prevent themselves and their property from being searched when law enforcement agencies like the police are carrying out their duties.

Simply said, lack of an open law in the constitution of the United States enables law enforcement agencies and especially the police to carry out their duties effectively (Kennedy 59). However this is not to say that American citizens are not protected by the constitution against unjustified harassment and unwarranted invasion on their private places of residences, nor does it take away the citizen’s right to practice happier life. On the contrary the constitution appreciates the need for a safer country with a proper environment for the pursuit of happiness by citizens.

The law therefore takes a broader picture with inclusion of the right to life and the right to have an inviolate personality. (The right to be alone) the laws therefore recognize that in a civilized society like that of America, such like rights are fundamental and cannot be taken away.(Olmstead Vs US, 1928) the constitution therefore simply trying to protect innocent citizens so that they do not suffer the consequences of malicious actions or thoughts from people and groups with a negative intention of causing harm to others (Supreme court 7).

Another important point to make is that, as much as the right to privacy is not directly rooted in the constitution of America, it (Right to Privacy) is deeply seated in tenets of ethics of American lifestyle and values safeguarded b the constitution of America. The right of privacy is protected through the following ways; i) The Bill of Rights and Common Law Even though the American constitution does not explicitly talk about protection of privacy using the word ‘privacy’ the supreme court has confirmed that their exists the right of privacy in the common law and Bill of Rights.

The fourth amendment in the Bill of Rights safeguards people’s papers, homes and their personalities against unrealistic seizures and searches by states and governments (Lankford 21). The initial amendment emphasizes this by safeguarding freedom of speech, religion, assembly and press and utterly defends the autonomy of thought as well as intellect (Olmstead v US). ii) Public Libraries Precedent has been set by the initial decision by the Supreme Court that completely articulated the protection of privacy in the case Griswold v.

Connecticut. The court ruled that the protection of privacy integrated the entitlement by couples that are married to make use of family planning methods. The case was listened to in Griswold, and the jury stated clearly in writing to the court, the Bill of Rights very clearly creates privacy zones in initial Amendment of association Rights, the Tipple Amendment on barring the army to quarter in a place of residence, the Quadruple Amendment which guarantees safety in an individual’s house, person, papers and effects.

He courts have further identified the protection to privacy in libraries that are public. For instance the initial Amendment safeguards the entitlement to be a recipient to information in libraries that receive funding from the community. The professional code on the other side tightens the security of privacy that the Bill of Rights guarantees. The effect of these protections is the conflicts between the privacy principles and confidentiality (Lane 58). iii) The Substantive Due Process The philosophy in the judiciary agree that the due process substantively in the fourteenth Amendment process is channeled at safeguarding entirely the unlisted rights which are perceived basic and open in the philosophy of civilized liberalism, included in these rights is the protection of privacy.

In reality the due process is accepted as activism in judiciary because it is motivated by the desire to check the perception of laws that do not respect personal freedoms even those that are highlighted in the American Constitution. Substantive due process has been commonly quoted by courts while attempting to limit people’s misuse by business enterprise as well as the government by safeguarding peoples’ right to bargain employment agreements with employers thus declaring work conditions and minimum wage unconstitutional.

Nowadays, substantive due process is applied in safeguarding people from abuse or laws that make unjustified saddle on people, identified group or a citizen class. The court determines the government’s motive to infringe into people’s private lives by applying the Rational Basis Formula to find out if the laws are relevant to genuine government concern. If the legislation goes through the test, it is further tested by the ‘scrutiny that is strict’ to find out if there is a convincing interest of the state that give good reason to violating individual or group’s basic entitlement.

Work cited Alderman, Caroline Kennedy Ellen. The Right to Privacy. Washington D.C.: Carlifornia Printing Press, 1997. Court, U.S. Supreme. "The Right to Privacy : Historic Supreme Court Decisions." Land Mark Publications (2011): 1-16. Lane, Fredrick. American Privacy: The 400 Year of History of our most Contested Right. Washington D.C: Penguine Publishers, 2011. Lankford, Ronnie D. Are our Private rights Violated. Michigan: Michigan Printing Press, 2010. Samuel D. Warren, Louis D. Brandeis and Steven A.

Childress. The Right to Privacy. Washington D.C: Washington Printing Press, 2010.