Should a previously-deported alien felon who illegal returns to the country be able to claim the protections of the Fourth Amendment? This is an open question under current Supreme Court precedent.

A few days ago, Judge Crow in the District of Kansas released an informative opinion, which concluded that such persons are not entitled to the protection of the Fourth Amendment.

Judge Crow noted that a burglar, for example, could not claim the protections of the Fourth Amendment to challenge the legality of a search in the home that he was burglarizing. Similarly, a previously-deported alien felon who sneaks back into the country should not be able to claim the protections of the Fourth Amendment.

Judge Crow's opinion reaches the same conclusion that I reached in an opinion several years ago — United States v. Esparza-Mendozo. When my case went to the Tenth Circuit, the Circuit ducked the tricky legal issues. I suspect the appellate courts won't be able to duck it much longer.