Legal Foundations: U.S. and Texas Constitutions, Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure
Constitutional and statutory framework
Know the Fourth Amendment reasonableness requirement for stops, arrests, searches, and seizures; the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination; the Sixth Amendment right to counsel and confrontation; the Eighth Amendment; and Fourteenth Amendment due process and equal protection. The Texas Constitution, Article I, protects similar rights, including search and seizure, rights of accused persons, bail, and due process. Texas courts sometimes interpret state protections more broadly, so do not assume federal and state rules are identical.
The Penal Code defines offenses by title, chapter, and section. Candidates must recognize the culpable mental states-intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, and criminal negligence-and be able to identify elements, parties, inchoate offenses, and justification defenses. The Code of Criminal Procedure governs arrest, search warrants, magistrate warnings, bail, charging instruments, discovery, and exclusion. Key provisions include warrantless arrest authority, recorded custodial statements, and the Texas exclusionary rule.
Traps
Miranda applies only to custodial interrogation, not every contact or traffic stop. A warrantless felony arrest in a public place with probable cause is generally permitted; a home arrest generally requires a warrant, consent, or exigency. "Probable cause" is not "reasonable suspicion." A traffic stop is a seizure.
Worked example
Officers have probable cause to arrest a suspect for a felony. If he is standing in a public parking lot, they may arrest him without a warrant. If he retreats into his home, they generally may not follow without a warrant, consent, or exigent circumstances. Rule of thumb: custody plus interrogation equals Miranda warnings.