California v. Greenwood
United States Supreme Court
486 U.S. 35 (1988)
- Written by Ariella Zarfati, JD
Facts
Police officers had information that Greenwood (defendant) was involved in illegal drug transactions. The police had a garbage collector empty his truck and then go pick up Greenwood’s trash, which was left outside on the curb for collection. The evidence from Greenwood’s trash was offered as probable cause to support the issuance of a warrant authorizing a search of Greenwood’s home. The search of Greenwood’s home yielded evidence that led to Greenwood’s arrest on drug charges. The trial court concluded that the search of a person’s trash violated the Fourth Amendment and the California Constitution. The trial court dismissed the charges against Greenwood. The State of California (plaintiff) appealed, and the court of appeals affirmed the district court’s dismissal. The state supreme court declined to review the appellate decision. The state petitioned the United States Supreme Court for review.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (White, J.)
Dissent (Brennan, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 812,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
