In United States constitutional law,the good-faith exception (also good-faith doctrine) isa legal doctrine providing an exemption to the exclusionary rule.
The exemption allows evidence collectedin violation of privacy rights as interpreted from the FourthAmendment to be admitted at trial if police officers acting in goodfaith (bona fides) relied upon a defective search warrant — thatis, they had reason to believe their actions were legal (measuredunder the reasonable person test).
The rule was established in the twocompanion cases decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1984: UnitedStates v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897 (1984), and Massachusetts v.Sheppard, 468 U.S. 981 (1984). The exception permits the courtsto consider the mental state of the police officer.
Not all states follow the good faithexception to the exclusionary rule, such as New York in People v.Bigelow, 488 N.E.2d 451 (N.Y. 1985).
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Real Crime/Paranormal/Conspiracy Theories Book III
Non-FictionReal crime stories, paranormal stories, and conspiracy theories are discussed.
