Third Amendment Lawsuit

[Mavric]

A Nevada man recently filed a federal lawsuit claiming local police violated his rights protected under the Third Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

 

If you had to go look up the Third Amendment, don’t feel bad. You certainly weren’t alone. Americans rarely reference this particular Bill of Rights provision in this modern age.

 

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

 

Anthony Mitchell says Henderson, Nev., police broke down the door of his home, held him at gunpoint and placed him under arrest when he refused to voluntarily allow officers to enter his home and use it as a lookout during a domestic violence investigation of his neighbor.

 

Full Article

[NUance]

A second possible impediment to winning a Third Amendment claim in this case is that the Amendment is one of the few parts of the Bill of Rights that the Supreme Court still has not “incorporated” against state governments. For incorporation purposes, claims against local governments (like this one) are treated the same way as claims against states. On the other hand, the Supreme Court has never ruled that the Third Amendment does not apply to the states. If, as the Court has previously decided, virtually all the rest of the Bill of Rights applies to state governments, there is no good reason to exclude the Third Amendment. If the Third Amendment part of the case is not dismissed on other grounds, the federal district court may have to address the issue of incorporation.

Heh, I didn't know that there was any part of the Constitution that potentially does not apply to state gov'ts.