Mapp v. Ohio case brief

Mapp v. Ohio case brief summary
367 U.S. 643 (1961)

CASE SYNOPSIS

Defendant appealed from a judgment of the Supreme Court of Ohio, which affirmed her conviction for possessing obscene literature in violation of Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 2905.34. Defendant contended that the evidence seized during a search and that was introduced at the trial was prohibited under U.S. Constitutional Amendment IV.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

• It was apparent that the materials introduced into evidence in the prosecution of defendant were seized during an illegal search of defendant's residence in violation of the Fourth Amendment. 
• Nevertheless, the state supreme court affirmed defendant's conviction for possessing lewd material in violation of Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 2905.34 on the basis that the Fourteenth Amendment did not apply in the state court prosecution of defendant for a state crime to forbid the admission of evidence obtained by an unreasonable search and seizure. 

DISCUSSION

• On appeal, the Court reversed the state supreme court's decision. 
• The Court held that the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment extended to the States the Fourth Amendmentright against unreasonable searches and seizures. 
• And, as necessary to ensure such rights, the exclusionary rule, which prohibited the introduction into evidence of material seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment, likewise applied to the State's prosecution of state crimes.

CONCLUSION

The Court reversed the judgment of the state supreme court and remanded the cause for further proceedings not inconsistent with the Court's opinion.

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