The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury...nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense. In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. |
| | The fundamental right to Due Process, expressed in the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eigth articles of the Bill of Rights are designed to assure the fundamental fairness of criminal justice procedures. Due process was one of the most important freedoms for early Americans: Samuel Adams asserted that American anger toward at-will general searches by British troops to be "the Commencement of the Controversy between Great Britain and America." (Levy, Original Intent, 227-8; Glasser 166) Due process rights are constantly challenged by the suggestion that they are only a refuge for the guilty and a roadblock to effective law enforcement. Actually, due process laws protect the innocent by maintaining a standard of fairness and consistant procedure of investigations and trials. Unfortunately, due process protections and the professional procedures they protect are constantly eroding: the FBI, which overzealously investigated law-abiding Americans in the 1960's (?), has most recently been given free-reign again through the "anti-terrorist" USA-PATRIOT act. |
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Friday, August 16, 2002 |
© Copyright 2002 Lucas Burke.
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