Ruling in Mapp v. Ohio, on June 19, 1961, the majority opinion declared that “All evidence obtained by searches and seizures in violation of the Federal Constitution is inadmissible in a criminal trial in a state court.”
The question presented was:
“[W]hether the States are Constitutionally free to follow [the common-law non-exclusionary rule] or not as they may themselves determine.”
Oral Arguments
You can hear the oral arguments for this case here:
The Ruling
You can read the final ruling in Mapp v. Ohio either in our read in full below, or click here for a PDF.