criminal law/procedures

Module 04 Content

1. Review the following scenario and then draft a pre-trial motion.

2. Scenario

   Police obtained a warrant to search a single-family residence for “illegal amphetamines and equipment used in the manufacture of same.” The warrant also authorized the search of the person of Harry Hampton, described in the warrant as a white male, 32 years of age, 6 ft. 2 in., and 225 lbs. When police arrived at the scene, one officer began to search Hampton. When that search yielded contraband, another officer detained a second man sitting on the porch (he was later identified as Jimmy Jaffers). The officer subjected Jaffers to a pat-down search. No weapons were discovered on Jaffers’s person, but the officer, having felt a “suspicious lump” in Jaffers’s front pants pocket, retrieved a plastic bag of capsules that later proved to be illegal amphetamines.

3. Draft a Pre-Trial Motion

   Assume that you are working as part of Jaffer’s defense and have been asked to draft a pre-trail motion at your local state level court. For this motion, you will need to research Supreme Court cases related to search and seizure and the 4th amendmentUse case law to support the following:

   • That the contraband found on Jaffers’ person should be suppressed;
   • That he was also a victim of an unreasonable search.
   • Be sure to reference the cases you chose in your responses to make your arguments. Several cases have been provided below that you can use.
   • As part of your Argument (see sample below) be sure to address whether Jaffers is likely to prevail in this contention. Why or why not? Support your position with case law.

   Note: Three reference cases have been provided below. You can use two of these cases in your draft, but you will need to research one additional case for your submission.

   • State v. Edstrom, 916 N.W.2d 512 (Minn., 2018) State v. Edstrom, 916 N.W.2d 512 (Minn., 2018)
   • State v. Ture, 632 N.W.2d 621 (Minn., 2001) State v. Ture, 632 N.W.2d 621 (Minn., 2001)
   • Yang v. State, No. A07-1034 (Minn. App. 5/6/2008) (Minn. App., 2008) Yang v. State, No. A07-1034 (Minn. App. 5/6/2008) (Minn. App., 2008)

   Note: A sample Pre-Trial Motion to Suppress from the State of Minnesota has been provided below. Use this sample as a guideline to help in your response but be sure to replace the court in the header with your own state.

4. Format

   Your complete response should be 3 – 5 pages in length. Be sure to cite all your references and format them according to Bluebook Standards. For writing assistance, consider using Grammarly or submitting your written assignment to the Writing Lab prior to submitting your assignment.

   Need help?

   Use the following links for information on structuring and formatting your case brief.

   • How do I cite using Bluebook Guidelines?
   • Creating Bluebook Citations
   • You are encouraged to use active voice as much as possible in your paralegal writing. Refer to the following Active v. Passive Voice FAQ

   Make an appointment with a Paralegal Tutor in Tutor Match.

   • Be sure to select Paralegal in the “School” drop down and then Criminal Law and Procedure as the “Subject” for tutors trained to assist specifically with this class.
   • Click here to connect with a tutor in Tutor Match.
   • Click here for directions on how to use Tutor Match.

   For a complete list of writing resources including the Bluebooking using the Indigo Book, Writing Guide, or Writing Lab please visit the FAQ How do I access writing support?

   • Other helpful resources are available in the Paralegal pages of the School of Justice Studies Guide.

5. Submission

   Submit your completed assignment by following the directions linked below. Please check the Course Calendar for specific due dates.
   Save your assignment as a Microsoft Word document. (Mac users, please remember to append the “.docx” extension to the filename.) The name of the file should be your first initial and last name, followed by an underscore and the name of the assignment, and an underscore and the date. An example is shown below:
   Jstudent_exampleproblem_101504

Submission