The Bill of Rights is a vital component of the U.S. Constitution that was developed to make sure that the basic rights of American citizens were protected. Most of the Amendments and Bill of Rights have had a significant impact on the criminal justice system. The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, and the Fourteenth Amendments were designed to ensure that suspected people are treated fairly during investigations, arrests, and prosecution. The Amendments form the basis of due process which ensures that the laws are applied equally and fairly to all people and specifically an American citizen who has been accused of a crime. In the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, the constitution states that a person should not be deprived of “life, liberty, or property, without due process…”
The Fourth Amendment
The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects personal privacy and ensures every citizen’s right to be free from any unreasonable government intrusion into their persons, property, homes, and businesses through seizures and searches (Donohue, 2016). Although the Amendment protects a citizen against searches and seizures that are considered unreasonable under the law, it does not guarantee all seizures and searches. The Amendment gives an exception saying that a warrant shall not be issued unless there is a probable cause that is supported by an affirmation or Oath describing the place that is to be searched and the things or people to be seized. Therefore, all warrantless searches and seizures are legal only if the things being searched are in plain view. The Amendment is important to the citizens because it protects their privacy and prevents law enforcers from arbitrarily taking or searching through the property. However, on the part of law enforcers like the police, the Amendment allows the suspects to destroy or remove the evidence before they can acquire a warrant (Donohue, 2016). When police violate the rights under the Fourth Amendment and the seizure or search is declared unlawful, any evidence taken from that act cannot be submitted in a court of law. That aspect has a significant impact on the criminal procedure since it makes the work of police officers to be uncertain since they do their duties fearing that they may violate the rights of the suspect. The courts are also subjected to an extra effort of establishing whether the search or seizure was legal.
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The Fifth Amendment
The Fifth Amendment provides rights in both civil and criminal proceedings. In criminal cases, the Amendment guarantees the defendant the right to a grand jury and forbids double jeopardy. It also protects against self-incrimination and it requires that the due process of the law is followed during the proceedings. A person expected to answer capital or other infamous crimes should be presented in front of a grand jury. The right to the suspect not to testify against himself or herself means that they have the right to remain silent (Dripps, 2017). When a person is arrested, the arresting authority should inform them of their right to remain silent and the right to have counsel to represent them. The intention was to avoid instances of involuntary or forced confessions by the police. Involuntary confessions cannot be used in courts and police are required to issue warnings to suspects they arrest.
The Sixth Amendment
It guarantees the rights to a speedy and public trial, the right to have the assistance of counsel for his/her defense, the right to an impartial jury, the right to know the accuser and the nature of the charges and the witnesses against him/her. The accused has also the right to obtain witnesses in his favor. In the case of Clarence Gideon, the Supreme Court overturned his conviction arguing that the right to counsel under Sixth Amendment was fundamental and that lawyers were necessities in criminal cases rather than luxuries (Ossei-Owusu, 2018). This means that, when a person is convicted, it should be as a result of a fair trial. The Amendment has therefore laid the burden on the law enforcers and the court to offer counsel to defendants who cannot afford to hire one.
The Fourteenth Amendment
It addresses the various aspects of citizenship and the rights of U.S. citizens. The Amendment has various clauses, the Privileges or Immunities Clause, the Equal Protection Clause, the Citizenship Clause, and the Due Process Clause. The Amendment granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the U.S. including people who were formerly slaves. It guaranteed all U.S. citizens an “equal application of the laws” (Baer, 2018). The third Clause of the Amendment states that no state shall enact or enforce a law that abridges the immunities and privileges of U.S. citizens. Therefore, the Amendment expanded the due process clause stipulated in the Fifth Amendment and made it applicable to the states. It also states that no state shall deprive citizens of liberty, property, or life without the due process of the law. It also forbids states from denying a person within their jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. The Amendment directly expanded the legal and civil rights of all United States citizens by protecting them from being infringed by either the states or the federal government. The Supreme Court has continuously interpreted the third clause as a guarantee of any rights against infringement by the states (Baer, 2018). By so doing, t has expanded the scope of the clause to include the Bill of Rights such as freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. The clause has also been interpreted to protect citizens’ fundamental rights that are not mentioned elsewhere in the U.S. Constitution such as the right to privacy.
References
Baer, J. A. (2018). Equality under the constitution: reclaiming the fourteenth amendment . Cornell University Press.
Donohue, L. K. (2016). The Original Fourth Amendment. The University of Chicago Law Review , 1181-1328.
Dripps, D. A. (2017). Miranda for the Next Fifty Years: Why the Fifth Amendment Should Go Fourth. BUL Rev. , 97 , 893.
Ossei-Owusu, S. (2018). The Sixth Amendment Façade: The Racial Evolution of the Right to Counsel. U. Pa. L. Rev. , 167 , 1161.
