Search and Seizures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Search and Seizures - Essay Example In Mapp V Ohio,2 the court held that this constitutional duty applies against both the state and the Federal government. It does this by prohibiting unreasonable searches and seizures from being conducted by federal and state law enforcement agencies. A search is an infringement of the right to privacy while seizures interfere with the possessory rights of the individuals, including right to property ownership. The Fourth Amendment permits reasonable searches and seizures. For a search to be legally carried out, it is subject to the proviso that a search warrant has to be issued by a judge. An application for search warrant has to be supported by an oath or affirmation, and to specifically state the place to be searched or the things or persons to be seized. For the judge to issue a search warrant, he must satisfy himself that there is a probable cause, that is, reasonable cause to believe that the law enforcement agencies can find evidence of commission of a crime. Nevertheless, suc h a search has to be individualized, targeting individuals and not generalized. There are exemptions for the warrant requirements as far as entry into private residences by police is concerned. To begin with, if the owner of the residence consents, such entry shall not be illegal under the fourth amendment because of absence of a warrant. However, such warrant must be given voluntarily, and be unequivocal and specific. Consequently, consent obtained by duress or coercion fails this criterion. The person who gives the consent has to be the owner of the residence. Similarly, a third party can give the consent for the law enforcement agencies to search a house or premises subject to the proviso that they own or lawfully occupy such premises. In Georgia v. Randolph,3 the court held that where the residents are two and both are present, if one of them objects to consent while the other consents, the objection by one of them shall override the consent. To add, an officer can enter a priva te house or residence without warrant, in times of emergency. The search however shall be subject to the existence of exigent circumstances and the law enforcers must have a probable cause. Such a circumstance shall exist where a law enforcement agent needs to take a compelling action but lacks the required time to acquire a warrant. In Mincey V Arizona,4 the court stated that, â€Å"we hold a reasonable, and warrantless search of the scene of a homicide, or of a serious personal injury with likelihood of death where there is reason to suspect foul play-does not violate the fourth amendment of the United States Constitution where the law enforcement officers were illegally on the premises in the first instance†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Nevertheless, for such a search to be reasonable within the Fourth Amendment it has to be limited to the purpose of only determining the circumstances of death and the scope must never exceed what is necessary to fulfill that purpose. In addition, it must commen ce within reasonable period following the time when the officials learn of the murder. Evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendm

The Body Ritual Among the Nacirema Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Body Ritual Among the Nacirema - Essay Example In such cases, though certain traits of any ritual differ from class to class and communal segment to another segment, performing this ritual often are based on a common metanarrative. Factually, the symbolism as well as the roles of the participants is determined by individual interests and communal interests in the ritual. One such American (or Nacirema ritual, in Horace Miner’s term) ritual is the eating ritual. Indeed Miner’s hoax anthropological article â€Å"Body Ritual among the Nacirema† deals with the question whether the American obsession with the cleanliness of human is justifiable or irrational. While parodying the American body ritual from an ethnocentric perspective, Miner clarifies his side by quoting Malinowski â€Å"Looking from far and above, from our high places of safety in the developed civilization, it is easy to see all the crudity and irrelevance of magic† (Miner, ). Meanwhile Miner explores deep into the fact whether modern anthro pologists are aware of the dichotomy between scientific knowledge of a ritual practiced by a community and the ethnocentric bias of research. When he uses the term â€Å"configuration† or â€Å"style†, he essentially criticizes the modern trends of perceiving a culture from a Eurocentric perspective.... Indeed the sense of individuality is greatly contributed to by a member’s corporeal or bodily existence in the society, that is, to a great extent can be considered as â€Å"one body, one individual† (existentialism). This attitude to one’s self highly determines their habit of eating in groups. Also this sense of individuality has a great role in the segregation of the society into the smallest functional groups that are mostly similar to modern family. The â€Å"one body, one individual† motive also shapes their taste in food. Sense of Individuality and Body in Shaping the Rituals The underlying grand principle of individuality is to sustain the body, therefore, to sustain the individual through rituals and ceremonies. Each of the functional segments like modern family has commonly one or two shrines where the members participate in the rituals. Often members of a number of families gather together in domestic and commercial shrines to take part in the b elly-ritual or eating ritual. Generally the laymen of the Nacirema do not have any specific shrine, whereas there are commercial shrines for people. Symbolism of the Eating Ritual While performing the eating ritual, the Nacirema perform some other rituals i.e. hand-washing as a process of purifying the evil, offering-vases washing, etc. Generally the Naciremans take two types of liquids: holy liquids and normal liquid. They take the normal liquid as a part of their livings. But they occasionally take the holy liquids in order to get temporal relief from the adversaries of reality. Reportedly a number of the Naciremans are found to depend excessively on the holy liquids. One of the mentionable eating rituals of Nacirema is to have granular and solid meals. The Naciremans show a tendency to classify