Section 14 Freedom From Unreasonable Searches and Seizures

• Library: Employer-Employee Law 2008

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and article I, § 15, of the Missouri Constitution protect citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures. Public employees retain these rights in the workplace, but their scope is more limited than in the law enforcement context. O’Connor v. Ortega, 480 U.S. 709 (1987) (plurality). In Fourth Amendment cases, the court first determines whether the employee has an objectively reasonable expectation of privacy. This inquiry is fact-specific and “must be...