Re: [MLUG - DISCUSSION] Alito's first decision on the supreme court

[Mike Miller <EMAIL:PROTECTED>]

On Sat, 4 Feb 2006, Stephen Montgomery-Smith wrote:

> > We have to worry a little about Alito's other views on criminal 
> > procedure:
> >
> > http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/communications/newsreleases/2005/111605.html
> > http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/osjcl/eJournal_3-1.htm
> >
> > We don't want to give too much authority to the police.  There is a 
> > balance and I'm concerned that Alito could push to far in one 
> > direction.
>
> The popular media shows ("Law and Order", etc) give a perception that 
> the police are often hampered in bringing a criminal to trial because 
> they slipped up on some technicality.  I have always wondered if this 
> perception is true.  Presumably there is some truth to it.


Right.  That's one side.  The other side is that police have to suffer 
consequences for "slipping up," because if their are no consequences, they 
will "slip up" all the time, which will mean that they can do whatever 
they please to us.  So we have to balance one against the other. 
Obviously, we don't want to let murderers go free on technicalities, but 
we also don't want to allow police to violate our rights.

Mike

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