What Cases Are Police Stops and Frisks Appropriate in - Term Paper Example

Download file to see previous pages In the United States, stops, just like frisks, are governed by the legal principles contained in the Fourth Amendment. The Fourth Amendment permits law enforcement officers to protect themselves and the public against the suspected criminals in the event that they suspect probable criminal activity. The police officers can carry out the stops even when an apparent cause for an arrest does not exist. It is regarded as unreasonable for a legal authority or person to deny a law enforcement officer the power and the right to take necessary actions to ascertain whether or not a suspected individual is armed. These steps taken by the police officers are important because they help the officers to neutralize the harm threat.

Stops and frisks infringe on the privacy of individuals. In addition, these practices are administered under the guidance of the Constitution that hinders unreasonable searches and arrests. As a result, the practices of stops and frisks are weighed against a less strict standard than those applicable to arrests and searches. This is because stops have limited scope than arrests. Similarly, frisks are limited in scope compared to full searches.

The challenge that the officers encounter during their practice is determining the reasonableness of the circumstance under which an individual should be stopped and frisked in the event that there is a lack of possible cause to arrest. The police officers, therefore, need to balance the competing interests entailed in the stops and frisks circumstances to determine the sensibleness of the situation. The common competing interests involved in such situations include the right of every citizen to privacy and the right to be free from unreasonable searches and arrests. The above-mentioned interests should be weighed against the interest of the government to effectively detect and prevent crimes besides protecting the law enforcers and other individuals from armed and dangerous people. ...Download file to see next pagesRead More