Once Immunized, Officer Must Tell the Truth (Garrity: Pt 6 of 6) Two recent cases from the United States Supreme Court make it clear that once a public employee is granted immunity by compelling the employee to respond to questions [...]
Are Off-Duty Incidents within the Scope of Garrity? (Garrity: Pt 5 of 6) In accordance with the ruling in Gardner v. Broderick, supra, a police officer may be compelled to answer questions specifically, directly, and narrowly relating to the performance of his [...]
Civilian Review Boards and Garrity (Garrity: Pt 4 of 6) As civilian oversight of police has become more common-place, the issue has arisen as to whether a civilian review board can compel statements from officers. The Court of Appeals of [...]
Compulsion as the Triggering Mechanism (Garrity: Pt 3 of 6) Employees have Rights against Compelled, Incriminating Statements but No Right to Garrity Immunity. The right of government employees against self-incrimination requires compulsion as a triggering mechanism for immunity against the [...]
Immunity Granted Under Garrity (Garrity: Pt 2 of 6) Most grants of immunity occur under the jurisdiction of a court in accordance with a statute. See E.g. 18 U.S.C. 6002. One type of immunity that developed in the context of [...]
Garrity & The Administrative Interview (Garrity: Pt 1 of 6) The Fifth Amendment provides that no person shall be compelled to give testimony against him or herself. This right against self-incrimination is not absolute. The government has the power to [...]
In Velazquez v. City of Hialeah et al, i the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit addressed a case where the plaintiff, Velazquez was unable to identify which officer at the scene of his arrest had actually been the [...]
Question Presented: Does the Fourth Amendment require the suppression of evidence obtained incident to an arrest that is based upon probable cause, where the arrest violates a provision of state law? On September 25th (2007) the United States Supreme Court [...]
Any time a law enforcement officer uses deadly force, the likelihood that a lawsuit will follow is almost a certainty. Most of these lawsuits are brought in the federal courts as civil rights claims based upon the Fourth Amendment to [...]
Note: Link to "Vehicle Stops" lesson plan at the bottom of this article. All motor vehicle stops must be supported by some level of proof. In other words, officers are not allowed to randomly stop vehicles. i It is generally not possible [...]