Reference no: EM133268027

Your task is to use the techniques from this course and evaluate the case presented. It should be a concise analysis and respond to the five questions. You should justify each answer with material from reliable sources or case law.

Scenario:

Police are notified of a "shots fired" call at a public park that also serves as an unofficial camp for the homeless. Dispatch advised that an anonymous caller told dispatch that she heard an argument from a nearby tent and then heard multiple gunshots, a period of quiet, and then another gunshot about 30 seconds later. The caller did not provide any further details and would not provide their name.

Upon arrival, officers observed about 40 tents in the makeshift camp. They begin a tent-by-tent canvass of the area going from tent to tent, attempting to contact anyone inside each tent. They announce themselves, and if there is no response, they enter the tent. In the first two tents, they find occupants who respond to the officers and exit their tents but are uncooperative and decline to answer any questions. In the third tent, the officers contact a resident who indicates he believes the shots came from a specific tent and identifies the tent to the officers.

By now, several minutes have passed. The officers attempt to contact the occupant of the identified tent but receive no response. The officers enter the tent and find a victim who has been shot. The victim is deceased. The officers continue through the camp in the same manner. After contacting other tent occupants nearby, the officers find another tent with no response. They enter the tent and find the occupant in a sleeping bag. The occupant did not respond. However, officers observed a handgun in plain view near the occupant. Upon seizing the weapon, officers could detect the odor of burnt gunpowder, indicating the weapon had been recently fired. The officers handcuff the suspect and read him his "Miranda" rights. He agrees to answer questions and waives his Miranda rights. He subsequently confesses to shooting the victim.

Answer the following questions in detail.

Question 1. Do the occupants of the tents have a "reasonable expectation of privacy" in a tent on public property?

Question 2. Should the evidence (the handgun) be suppressed under the exclusionary rule?

Question 3. Should the subsequent confession be excluded under the "fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine"?

Question 4. Was the search of the first tent (where the victim was found) legal? Why or why not?

Question 5. Was the search of the suspect's tent without a warrant legal? Why or why not?