January 19, 200521 yr Add another warrant exception to the long list. It never ceases to amaze me how much theyve dwindled down the 4th amendment right against warrantless search. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court declined to consider Tuesday whether a police officer may take a blood test from a suspected drunken driver without a warrant. Justices let stand a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling that said a forced blood test would not violate the driver's Fourth Amendment protection from unreasonable searches, even if the driver already had submitted to a breath test. The lower court reasoned that police's urgent need to obtain reliable evidence before alcohol dissipates from a driver's bloodstream justified a warrantless blood test. The case stems from a traffic stop in February 2002. Police stopped Jacob Faust and gave him a preliminary breath test that showed a 0.13 blood alcohol content. Faust also gave a second breath test at the police department. That test showed a blood alcohol content of 0.09, just above the 0.08 limit Faust was to adhere to because he had two prior drunken driving convictions. Police then took a blood test from Faust at a hospital without his consent. That test showed a 0.10 level. The trial court granted Faust's motion to suppress the results of the blood test after he argued there was no urgent need to justify the blood draw without a warrant. But the Wisconsin Supreme Court disagreed, ruling that police had a right since they can't predict whether a breath test will be found reliable in court. The case is Faust v. Wisconsin, 04-471.
January 19, 200521 yr Thatll make it to the supreme court. In my opinion police should not be able to do any of that stuff w/o a warrant. It may slow down the process but the police too often charge innocent people with many of those strict liability laws. For example, in many cases its the police officers word against the accused, in whic hthe officer always wins. Police should not have that much power. If its speeding they should always have to show the calibrations on the radar gun and so forth.
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