Katz v. United States case brief

Katz v. United States case brief summary

Facts

Katz would place sports bets across the country that violated federal law. Police taped the phone calls 

Issue

The government here is saying there was no papers, houses, places, or effects.

Analysis

4^th ammendment: a person has a reasonable expectation to privacy.

This particular case focuses on Privacy rather than search and seizure.

He went in the booth and closed the door, expecting privacy 

An electronic, as well as physical intrusion into a place that is in this sense private, may constitute a violation of the 4th amendment. 

RULE 

First question: Was there a search or a seizure?   Does the 4^th amendment even apply?

First: did the person exhibit an actual expectation of privacy (subjective)?

Second: Was the search or seizure reasonable? 

This search was unreasonable because they did not have a warrant, making it unreasonable.

HOLDING:
REVERSED

It is presumptively unreasonable if there is no warrant 

They probably didn’t get a warrant because the Olmsted said it's not needed

Third: what remedy is appropriate?

DISSENT 

This conversation was neither searched nor seized. 

What one attempts to keep private and has a reasonable expectation of privacy, they are protected by the 4^th am. 

When the goverment listened to his private conversations, they intruded on his reasonable expectation of privacy 

In this case, they should have gotten a warrant first.

Now what? Because listening to this conversation led to his conviction, he must be acquitted.