2024 Lesson 9: Caselaw Update

This lesson addresses recent court decisions providing guidance to law enforcement officers regarding: 

1. Police liability for injuries to suspects, passengers, and innocent third parties in connection with police officers’ pursuit of fleeing suspects; 

2. What facts and circumstances will show that property was abandoned such that officers may conduct a warrantless search of the property, what facts and circumstances will show that a third party had actual or apparent authority to consent to a search of a container within a vehicle, and what evidence must be presented to justify admission of evidence under the inevitable discovery doctrine; 

3. The Fourth Amendment’s restrictions on an officer’s use of force; and 

4. When officers may, consistent with Missouri law and the Fourth Amendment, require individuals to identify themselves or may only request them to do so.