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Should The Narcotics Officers Work Undercover To Collect Evidence?

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In the case study regarding the narcotics officers working undercover to collect evidence against the hydroponic supply shop raises many questions.
First of all, it is important that the officers provide documented evidence that the criminal informant used, who provided the tip, is reliable. The entire case they are building is solely based on his tip, without any type of evidence. According to Swanson, Chamelin, Territo, and Taylor (2012), “The laws of most jurisdictions permit an arrest in at least three and sometime four types of situation, (1) When a warrant has been issued, (2) When a crime is committed in the presence of an arresting officer, (3) When an officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect being arrested has committed a felony, and (4) a statutorily created …show more content…

There is also no evidence that a statutorily created instance exists. Therefore, the only permitted circumstance for an arrest is probable cause. When reviewing the probable cause definition, Swanson et al (2012), state that “probable cause is more than one suspicion but less than actual knowledge. It is suspicion plus facts and circumstances that would lead a reasonable person exercising ordinary care to believe that a crime has been, is being, or is about to be committed” (p 24). However, the narcotics officers failed to abide by the Fourth Amendment, which protects the privacy against warrantless searches, by entering the store without a search warrant. They also climbed a fence several times over a course of two weeks to look for evidence, breaking the “Plain View Seizures.” They also went as far as to dress as employees in order to obtain evidence against the store without having any probable cause. On a different occasion, the narcotics officers followed a patron from the store to his residence breaching the patron’s right to

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