but what about some other case where suppressed evidence, and I am not limiting this to confessions here, could conclusively prove guilt, but without it there isn't much of a case?
Suppose a cop is in a suspect's apartment without a search warrant, and illegally opens a drawer where he finds a knife, covered in a murder victim's blood, with what later proves to be the suspects fingerprints all over it. Under the current rules, the defense will move to exclude the knife from evidence, as it was obtained in an illegal search. I think the knife should be entered into evidence, and the cop should be busted in rank and assigned to some really crap duty for a couple years.
Naturally, the punishment for the cop would vary according to the severity of his misconduct. |
