UPDATES & ANALYSIS

12.04

U.S. Supreme Court denies Iowan’s appeal challenging Fourth Amendment exception

by Rox Laird | December 4, 2018

The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear an appeal from an Iowa man who argued that his drunk-driving conviction was the product of an unconstitutional search and seizure.

The Court on Monday issued a list of cases considered at the justices’ Nov. 30 conference, and no new cases were accepted for review.

Terry Lee Coffman’s appeal focused on the reach of what’s known as a “community caretaking” exception to the Fourth Amendment in situations where a law-enforcement officer stops to assist a motorist. The exception allows a warrantless seizure based on an officer’s reasonable belief that an emergency exists or an individual needs assistance.

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October 2024 Opinion Roundup

The Iowa Supreme Court entered opinions in eight cases in October 2024. In addition to Rox Laird’s analysis of State of Iowa v. William Noble Chaiden Miller and Katherine Avenarius and Paul Avenarius v. State of Iowa summarized on this blog, the remaining opinions from October are summarized below.

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