ABSTRACT
Law enforcement officers who are unable to establish a basis for probable cause from an anonymous tip may overcome that deficiency if they can present information gathered from the entire set of circumstances that bear out the contents of the anonymous tip. The Fourth Amendment states that searches and seizures may not be conducted without probable cause and benefit of a search warrant and, further, that probable cause must be determined by a neutral and detached magistrate. The totality of the circumstances allows the magistrate to verify that the information contained in an anonymous tip is reliable, based upon such matters as observation by law enforcement officers fulfilling their duty to investigate the alleged illegal activity. The totality of the circumstances will allow the magistrate to issue the requested warrant, and all evidence uncovered during the course of a search conducted under the auspices of that warrant is completely admissible.
