Fourth amendment - Research Paper Example

The origin of the amendment can be traced to the efforts by the Americans to suppress disputes in the infamous rebellious slanderous prosecutions. There was a violent disagreement in the state on what the phrase “Represent the People” meant. The Revolutionary period was characterized by mob actions that were instigated by; (a) taxation without representation, (b) the general searches’ enforcement of the tax laws; they lacked enough evidence of unlawful activity. The authority to perform the searches was provided by the British Parliament which was the legislative authority at that period.

The mob grievances were further extended by the American’s inadequate indulgence in the decisions about how and when the searches could happen (Taslitz, 2006). The Revolution was motivated by the political theory and the disputes over the seizure and search policy. There was also concern over the insults that the people were being subjected by the state forces. A section of the insult was on the basis of the class; the uneducated, subordinate, and the low born officers were allowed to perform searches in the homes of high ranked free householders.

The colonists were offended by the people who did the searches and the mode of choosing the suspects. The choice of suspects was done arbitrarily without enough supporting evidence of the wrong done by the individual and it lacked guidelines that would limit the officer’s discretion. The injustice was so intense and it was once equated to the ongoing slavery at period (Taslitz, 2006). In other words, the Amendment addressed the issues during the colonial America that involved the issuance of searches without a cause or a warrant of arrest.

The Amendment is meant to safeguard the people of America from privacy violations in the form of seizures and searches of their cars, homes and other properties. The Amendment also covers issues concerning the unlawful arrest of people. The amendment is