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A warrant gives the police extraordinary power. The power to arrest someone and take them to jail. The power to raid a home. The power to seize possessions.

The Fourth Amendment sets boundaries on warrants including that they be “supported by oath or affirmation,” meaning that they be based on firsthand testimony taken under oath. But court decisions have made that provision meaningless. No court today requires compliance with the Oath or Affirmation Clause.

A new Institute for Justice case asks courts to once again plainly interpret the Constitution.

https://ij.org/case/mendenhall-v-city...

Michael Mendenhall ended up in a Denver jail charged with a felony after the police used secondhand information to get a warrant. The testimony of a dodgy witness was passed like a game of “telephone” from a police officer, to a detective, and then to a judge. Days after his arrest, the charges against Michael were dropped. However, the police continue to hold onto the property they seized with the warrant.

Michael, with help from the Institute for Justice, is suing to overturn the bad legal precedent that let law enforcement use secondhand information to get warrants. Once again, requiring an “oath or affirmation” would restore the protections the Founders intended to grant under Fourth Amendment.

His case is currently on appeal in the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.