Drone Law Today

Police Use of Drones & the Fourth Amendment, Part 4!   Welcome back, Drone Law Nation! Today we continue our special series on Drone Law Today: Drones and the Fourth Amendment!   This third episode looks at the case of Oliver v. U.S., a Supreme Court case from 1984. In this case, the Court addresses the "open fields doctrine." This doctrine is an "exception" to the Fourth Amendment. Essentially, this means that if the police gather evidence in an "open field," then no warrant is required.   This case builds on Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 of our series. These episodes established the "trespass" and "reasonable expectation of privacy" concepts in Fourth Amendment law.   The "open fields" doctrine is another piece of this puzzle. This concept is both a "bridge" to the aerial surveillance cases as well as a stand-alone concept that will be important for future drone cases.   Understanding these cases will help you, Drone Law Nation, to protect yourself and your business by seeing how t