Author Description

The Law Officer's Pocket Manual is a handy, pocket-sized, spiral-bound manual that highlights basic legal rules for quick reference and offers examples showing how those rules are applied. The manual provides concise guidance based on U.S. Supreme Court rulings on constitutional law issues and other legal developments, covering arrest, search, surveillance, and other routine as well as sensitive areas of law enforcement. It includes more than 100 examples drawn from leading cases to provide guidance on how to act in a wide variety of situations. The 2021 edition is completely updated to reflect recent court decisions. This book helps you keep track of everything in a readable and easy-to-carry format. Some important case rulings from the past 12 months include: The U.S. Supreme Court made clear that it is common sense for an officer pulling over a vehicle to assume, without additional evidence, that the driver is the registered owner. The U.S. Supreme Court appeared to signal the end to so-called Bivens suits filed against federal officers for constitutional violations. The First Circuit extended the community caretaking doctrine to the home in finding officers' warrantless entry justified. In the continuing evolution of the stop-and-frisk doctrine, the Second Circuit ruled that officers need more than a belief that a suspect possess something illicit--they must reasonably believe the suspect may pose a threat. The Tenth Circuit ruled that an officer's 15-minute phone call to a national database was reasonable and did not impermissibly extend a traffic stop. The Seventh Circuit said that the smell of marijuana combined with a driver's "shocked" body language justified a trunk search. The Fourth Circuit tossed a man's gun convictions after the officers arrested the man at his girlfriend's residence without probable cau