FLETC Legal Exam with correct answers graded A+

FLETC Legal Exam1. Thompson is suspected of running a counterfeiting operation out of his garage. The garage is attached to the dwelling. Without a warrant, three officers step onto his curtilage, shine a flashlight into the garage, and take a quick look. They observe a number of what appear to be $100 bills hanging from a clothesline. Was the observation into the garage lawful? a. No, because the officers physically intruded on a constitutionally protect location without either a warrant or an exception to the 4th Amendment. b. No, because the use of a flashlight violated Thompson's reasonable expectation of privacy. c. Yes, because the garage does not have curtilage because it is not a dwelling. d. Yes, because the garage itself was not within the curtilage of Thompson's dwelling. - correct answer a. No, because the officers physically intruded on a constitutionally protect location without either a warrant or an exception to the 4th Amendment. CORRECT: The root of the question says that the officers were on Thompson's curtilage. The officers did not have a warrant to be there and there is no 4th Amendment exception. Accordingly, the observation was unlawful and the information they obtained cannot be lawfully used to obtain a warrant. b. No, because the use of a flashlight violated Thompson's reasonable expectation of privacy. INCORRECT: Using a flashlight, by itself, does not violate a person's REP. c. Yes, because the garage does not have curtilage because it is not a dwelling. INCORRECT: Curtilage is not limited to dwellings and includes areas surrounding a dwelling. (Review your student text.) d. Yes, because the garage itself was not within the curtilage of Thompson's dwelling. INCORRECT: The garage was attached to the house so it was very likely on the curtilage. More importantly, the officers were unlawfully on the curtilage when they made their observations.