ach and recovered two pills of morphine. The Supreme Court ruled that evidence inadmissible because of the gross violation of defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights. Commenting on the case, Justice Felix Frankfurter stated “This is conduct that shocks the conscience…, methods too close to the rack and screw…”(Galloway, 130). Rochin v. California was ruled to be in violation of the Fourth Amendment and the due process clause within the Fourteenth Amendment. That case was yet another step towards the development of new regulations to shield citizens from police brutality. It also occurred to the courts that new measures to curb and punish police misconduct were desperately needed. During the Rochin case the Supreme Court has introduced a new concept called the “shock of conscience”.The next case of Irvine v. California was examined on February 8, 1954. The violations of the defendant’s rights were obvious. However, because of political pressures, the Court upheld the prior decision of the state court. The case involved electronic eavesdropping and even though the violations were clear, the Supreme Court did not apply the “shock of conscience” concept. However, Justice Frankfurter dissented and voted for the exclusion of the tainted evidence. Justice William O. Douglas also dissented and called for the application of the exclusionary rule to the states. Another similar case, Breithaupt v. Abram (1957), arose three years later and was upheld for the lack of police “brutality” and “coercion” (Galloway, 130). Again, the “shock of conscience” clause was deemed not applicable. Forty-three years had passed since the landmark Weeks decision, but very little progress could be seen in the enforcement of the exclusionary rule in the majority of the states. Police misconduct continued to create public outrage and protest. On June 16, 1961 the Court was pre...
