Why are there no Daredevil style vigilantes??

[Darthphere]

Actually, the law states that if a private citizen illigally finds evidence of a crime, that evidence can still be used.

Umm, no, it can't.

 

[kainedamo]

Umm, no, it can't.

According to the news articles on the subject, it can.

 

[Darthphere]

According to the news articles on the subject, it can.

Then whoever wrote the article was wrong. Its clear that they did allow the evidence in this case, but it shouldn't have happened. There is always an expectation of privacy. Someone breaking into my house and finding something illegal and then reporting that is not a viable source of information, and getting a warrant on those grounds is next to impossible to do.

 

[fangrl06]

Is this thread for real?

 

[ShadowBoxing]

Then whoever wrote the article was wrong. Its clear that they did allow the evidence in this case, but it shouldn't have happened. There is always an expectation of privacy. Someone breaking into my house and finding something illegal and then reporting that is not a viable source of information, and getting a warrant on those grounds is next to impossible to do.

It can only be done if you can show it was "inevitable discovery" or if you were just there as a guest on the property.

 

[Darthphere]

It can only be done if you can show it was "inevitable discovery" or if you were just there as a guest on the property.

Which they weren't. And inevitable discovery involves officers of the law, not private citizens.

 

[ShadowBoxing]

Which they weren't. And inevitable discovery involves officers of the law, not private citizens.

No it involves private citizens as well. Like if you are walking down the street, smell a really putrid smell and go and check it out and there is a giant meth lab inside...that would qualify as inevitable discovery, since the smell would have eventually attracted someone to check out the place.

Thats where the police get that argument from. So if they say something inevitable discovery, they are saying that, even if we were not investigating someone would have come across it.

 

[Darthphere]

No it involves private citizens as well. Like if you are walking down the street, smell a really putrid smell and go and check it out and there is a giant meth lab inside...that would qualify as inevitable discovery, since the smell would have eventually attracted someone to check out the place.

Thats where the police get that argument from. So if they say something inevitable discovery, they are saying that, even if we were not investigating someone would have come across it.

It depends how they got into the meth lab in the first place. All the person can do is report the smell, if they actually had to break into the place, then that changes everything.

Technically, that would be independent source, not inevitable discovery in your example.

 

[Malus]

I think Punisher type vigilantes would be more realistic. He doesn't attempt to rehabilitate or turn the criminal over to the police. He would kill them before they kill him. I bet there are a couple floating around, the police just keep it quiet.

I had a discussion a few years ago with a friend of mine that works at an ABC affiliate's news department. We talked a lot about stories that aren't covered (suicides, for instance) and he brought up a story he'd heard at a convention (national convention for local news people, I guess) about vigilante groups quietly forming in some areas that targeted paroled sex offenders. Not statuatory rape culprits, but guys who've hurt little children -repeatedly.
Supposedly this reporter or producer, whatever he was, didn't want to call attention to the situation because he didn't want the vigilantes ID'd and caught.
To which I say: