POLICE POWER COURT DECISION GIVES TOO MUCH LATITUDE
FOR SEARCHES OF PRIVATE CITIZENS

The statistics reveal that state and federal prisons are being
overwhelmed by people convicted of drug charges. Indeed, society is
spending so much money on incarceration that there is not enough left
over for adequate programs for drug and alcohol prevention and
rehabilitation programs.

Nevertheless, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday decided to make it
easier for police agencies to gather evidence and arrest people
suspected of drug violations.

In a 6-3 decision, the court ruled that police can search everything
in a car, including passengers' belongings, if there is reason to
suspect the car contains illegal drugs.

Once again, police are given new responsibilities to make instant
judgments about facts and constitutionality. The court expands
government authority to search people. And police agencies are tempted
to manufacture the circumstances that justify a fishing expedition.

"All these rules basically say that once you get in your car, you are
fair game," Boston University law professor Tracey Maclin told the Los
Angeles Times.

In effect, you do not have the same rights of privacy in your car that
you do in your home.

Monday's ruling, Maclin said, "affects potentially millions of
people."

Nobody will complain that this law increases the likelihood that drug
violators will be arrested, prosecuted and imprisoned. That's a worthy
outcome.

But at what price? To increase the incarceration rate for drug and
alcohol offenders, the court now decrees that more innocent people
will be subject to search.

Most people won't mind, of course, until they become the targets of
the search.