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Simple English definitions for legal terms
immediately-apparent requirement
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A quick definition of immediately-apparent requirement:
Term: IMMEDIATELY-APPARENT REQUIREMENT
Definition: When police officers are searching for evidence of a crime, they can only take things that they can immediately see and know are illegal. They can't take something just because they think it might be illegal. This rule was made by the Supreme Court in 1971. It means that police officers have to have a good reason to take something and can't just take things without a good reason.
A more thorough explanation:
The immediately-apparent requirement is a principle in criminal procedure that states that a police officer must have probable cause to believe that an item is contraband before seizing it. This means that the police officer must have a reasonable belief that the item is related to a crime before taking it.
For example, if a police officer pulls over a car and sees a gun on the back seat, they cannot simply seize the gun without probable cause that it is related to a crime. They must have a reason to believe that the gun is evidence of a crime before taking it.
This principle was first established in the case of Coolidge v. New Hampshire in 1971. The court ruled that an object cannot be seized from a car simply because the police have plain view of it. There must be probable cause that the object is related to a crime.
The immediately-apparent requirement is an important protection for individuals against unreasonable searches and seizures by law enforcement. It ensures that police officers cannot simply take items without a valid reason to believe that they are related to a crime.