Question

Mona raises marijuana plants in her basement. She has a few regular customers, even though marijuana is not legal in her state, but has never had any issues with the law. One day, the police show up at her house without a warrant. They request consent to search her house, and she declines. The police search the house anyway, find the marijuana plants, and arrest Mona for possession of marijuana with the intent to deliver. Savannah, Mona's attorney, moves to suppress the evidence before trial. After a hearing on the motion to suppress, the judge will probably:

A) Suppress the evidence because police are never allowed to search without a warrant.
B) Not suppress the evidence because even though the police did not have a warrant, once they entered the house, they saw marijuana plants in plain view.
C) Suppress the evidence because the police did not have a warrant for the search.
D) Not suppress the evidence because the search was incident to an arrest.

Answer 1

The judge will likely suppress the evidence found in Mona's house because the police conducted a search without a warrant and her consent, violating the Fourth Amendment and the exclusionary rule established by Mapp v. Ohio.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the case presented, the judge will most likely suppress the evidence because the police did not have a warrant, which is usually required for such searches, and Mona did not consent to the search. According to the Fourth Amendment, the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated.

The Supreme Court case Mapp v. Ohio established that evidence obtained without a warrant that does not fall under one of the established exceptions cannot be used in a state criminal trial. Since the marijuana plants were found during an illegal search, as no exceptions to the warrant requirement were present, the proper application of the exclusionary rule would render them inadmissible as the "fruit of the poisonous tree."