An old favorite on our first show of 2024, a search incident to arrest. Was it reasonable for the police to open a man’s backpack when he already lay handcuffed on the ground? Or should they have gotten a warrant first? IJ’s John Wrench analyzes this matter from the First Circuit where a case from the ‘70s about a bank robber suppresses a motion to suppress. Then IJ’s Betsy Sanz takes us out west to Los Angeles—but should it have been only as far as Nebraska? That’s the question the Ninth Circuit addresses where we encounter a lying congressman, the Vicinage Clause, and our friends at the FBI.

Click here for transcript.

U.S. v. Perez

U.S. v. Fortenberry

Riley v. California

Blog post on an Illinois case and vicinage

Recent Episodes

Short Circuit 436 | Retaliatory Justice

If you like the drama of local politics you’ll love this story, told by IJ’s Christian Lansinger, from the Sixth Circuit. A colorful and controversial […]

Listen Now

Short Circuit 435 | 1776 and Judicial Review

Happy America’s 250th! To celebrate, we’re doing things the IJ Way, tying in the events of 1776 to something that emerged a few years later […]

Listen Now