The alleged crime occurred on November 17th and on January 22nd the court does not know if there is enough evidence to go to trial? Am I the only person who thinks that is terrible?
Police officers today generally have (or "think" they have!) orders to detain, search, and/or arrest those "they feel" violated a law. The Founding Fathers were very much opposed to this kind of discretionary power being placed in the hands of any one person (and is evident by the general design of the Federal Government: the distribution of power across 3 branches, the system of "checks and balances", etc).
There are 2 elements of the Fourth Amendment that were intended to prevent Standing Orders from being executed against the people:
- The first is the "oath or affirmation": a sworn civilian complaint and
- The second is that warrants must be specific.
Both are intended to remove the discretion of arrest/search/seizure from the arresting officer, and provides the needed "checks and balances".
If the complaint MUST ALWAYS come from a civilian (i.e., not the government; not the arresting authority) this ensures that the Police Force is "reactive", and not self-directed. If all arrests/searches/seizures are documented with the specific justifications of the action (the warrant), this also removes the arbitrary discretion from the officer.
The Fourth Amendment requires specific Warrants and that the complaint be initiated by a civilian thus prohibiting the police from executing "Standing Orders" against the people. Today, in modern America, when the police arrest someone, there is rarely a specific warrant, and rarely is there the "oath or affirmation" of a complaining civilian.
Many Americans have come to blindly believe that the government will ensure our safety (or at least provide the illusion of safety). But such gullibility comes at a steep price---the devaluation of our freedoms. Requiring government to operate under the Constitution is the only protection the people have.
Benjamin Franklin said "Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both."
Remember if they can do it to this boy they can do it to you.
