Analysis of Oliver v. United States Case
Facts of the Case
According to this case, two narcotics officers were in their investigative duties on an open piece of land with marijuana, which is a controlled substance. Despite the sigh “No trespassing” on the farm, the officers went ahead and found a marijuana field over a mile from the petitioner’s home (Oliver v. United States, 1984). Oliver “the petitioner” was arrested for the manufacture of controlled substance. The District court held that that was an open field inviting intrusion, and hence suppressed the evidence of marijuana field discovery. The sixth circuit reversed the ruling by District Court, and the Supreme Court granted certiori.
Legal Issue
Whether there can be a legitimate expectation of privacy in an open field, and thus bringing the field under the protection of the Fourth Amendment.
Courts Decision
It was held that open fields are not granted privacy protection under the Fourth Amendment. The protection is only extended to the immediate lands that surrounds and are associated with the home (curtilage). The court concluded that the asserted expectation of privacy in open fields should not be taken as expectation that the society recognizes as reasonable (Oliver v. United States, 1984).
Reasoning
Under common law, only the curtilage warrants privacy protection under the Fourth Amendment, and open fields are clearly distinguished from curtilage. The curtilage is defined as the area that extends the privacy of intimate activities of life. Therefore, the asserted expectation of privacy in open field cannot be associated with reasonable societal expectation of privacy. Open fields are also accessible to the general public and fences do not bar the public from accessing these lands.
Discussion
I concur with the court ruling. The entry of police into open fields, although it may be considered a trespass, is not infringement of a person’s privacy. Since the police neither entered the petitioner’s private land nor his cartilage, then there was no application of the Fourth Amendment for this case.
Reference
Oliver v. United States – 466 U.S. 170 (1984)
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