According to the constitution, a police officer may conduct a search without a search warrant on certain circumstances. However, certain conditions must be met so that such a search is legal. In the first place, the search should be done when the police have a good reason to believe that the person has engaged in crime. This means that rumors cannot make a police to conduct a search. Secondly, a search can be done when the police believe that an individual intends to engage in a criminal activity. Even though the police are allowed to conduct a search without a warrant, there should be a good reason to do search.
Exclusionary rule is a rule that is used to protect suspects from being prosecuted in a court with evidence that is gathered through an illegal search. This means that if an individual is searched without a reason, he/she cannot be prosecuted in the court using the evidence gathered. According to the court, fruits that are got from a poisonous tree are also poisonous and this is why evidence gathered from illegal search is also illegal. It is however important to realize that in certain circumstances, evidence gathered through illegal search is useful. This is in case it would have been discovered even without the illegal search. In addition, if the search was an activity of a government body, then the evidence is also useful. With these observations, it can be seen that searches without warrant are to an extent important even though their use is limited.
Crime laboratory serves various purposes. In the first place, the laboratories test various chemicals that could be drugs that are illegal. Second, these laboratories test remains of explosives to find out the level of danger that these explosives could cause. The laboratories also test the blood composition of individuals to find out whether they had used drugs such as alchohol. They also test the electronic gadgets that are used in criminal activities. These investigations from the laboratories are important in providing evidence in courts.
The discrepancy in the services in the country is due to the fact that the gadgets used are also prone to errors and may give different results at different times. In addition, the qualification of the scientists involved differs and this influences the results. Use of different gadgets to evaluate the same issues lead to the discrepancies.
The most important services include examination of electronic gadgets such as computers and mobile phones. This is because this technology has in most of the times been abused by the terrorists and other criminals. Using the laboratory, terrorist activities, and other crimes can be prevented.
DNA tests are important evidences that are investigated by crime laboratories. Scientists discovered that individuals have DNA that does not match completely with any other individuals. When there are crimes such as rape and there are traces of blood or semen, the laboratories investigate whether the DNA of individuals match with the DNA found in the blood or semen collected from the scene of crime. This helps to determine whether the individual suspected has committed the crime or not. DNA tests are also important in testing the parenthood of a disputed child. In conclusion, DNA tests are very important in clarifying the criminal so that he/she can be prosecuted in the court.
References.
Houck, M. M. (2004). Trace evidence analysis: More cases in mute witnesses. Amsterdam: Elsevier Academic Press.
Lee, H. C., & Tirnady, F. (2002). Blood evidence: How DNA is revolutionizing the way we solve crimes. Reading, Mass: Perseus.
Smith, R. (2008). Fourth Amendment: The right to privacy. Edina, MN: ABDO Pub. Co.
