An affidavit is lacking in probable cause that no reasonable officer would rely on it. This would cause the good faith exception to fail.

An affidavit is lacking in probable cause that no reasonable officer would rely on it. This would cause the good faith exception to fail.

• A. False
• B. True
• C. Only if the warrant was signed
• D. Not relevant

Answer: (B)

The good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule rests on the idea that police acts in objective reliance on a warrant that they reasonably believe to be valid. But there is a crucial limit: if the affidavit supporting the warrant is so deficient in probable cause that no reasonable officer would rely on it, the good-faith exception does not apply. In that situation, the warrant is considered so lacking that the police cannot be said to have acted in good faith, and the evidence obtained under that warrant should be suppressed. This principle comes from the idea that the rationale for the good-faith exception is defeated when the basis for the warrant is hopelessly weak, such that any reasonable officer would recognize it as unreliable.

The good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule rests on the idea that police acts in objective reliance on a warrant that they reasonably believe to be valid. But there is a crucial limit: if the affidavit supporting the warrant is so deficient in probable cause that no reasonable officer would rely on it, the good-faith exception does not apply. In that situation, the warrant is considered so lacking that the police cannot be said to have acted in good faith, and the evidence obtained under that warrant should be suppressed. This principle comes from the idea that the rationale for the good-faith exception is defeated when the basis for the warrant is hopelessly weak, such that any reasonable officer would recognize it as unreliable.