104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 666

AN ACT

To control crime by exclusionary rule reform.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Exclusionary Rule Re5 form Act of 1995’’.

6 SEC. 2. ADMISSIBILITY OF CERTAIN EVIDENCE.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 223 of title 18, United

8 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow9 ing:
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1 ‘‘§ 3510. Admissibility of evidence obtained by search

2 or seizure

3 ‘‘(a) EVIDENCE OBTAINED BY OBJECTIVELY REA4 SONABLE SEARCH OR SEIZURE.—Evidence which is ob5 tained as a result of a search or seizure shall not be ex6 cluded in a proceeding in a court of the United States

7 on the ground that the search or seizure was in violation

8 of the fourth amendment to the Constitution of the United

9 States, if the search or seizure was carried out in cir10 cumstances justifying an objectively reasonable belief that

11 it was in conformity with the fourth amendment. The fact

12 that evidence was obtained pursuant to and within the

13 scope of a warrant constitutes prima facie evidence of the

14 existence of such circumstances.

15 ‘‘(b) EVIDENCE NOT EXCLUDABLE BY STATUTE OR

16 RULE.—

17 ‘‘(1) GENERALLY.—Evidence shall not be ex18 cluded in a proceeding in a court of the United

19 States on the ground that it was obtained in viola20 tion of a statute, an administrative rule or regula21 tion, or a rule of procedure unless exclusion is ex22 pressly authorized by statute or by a rule prescribed

23 by the Supreme Court pursuant to statutory author24 ity.

25 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE RELATING TO OBJECTIVELY

26 REASONABLE SEARCHES AND SEIZURES.—Evidence
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1 which is otherwise excludable under paragraph (1)

2 shall not be excluded if the search or seizure was

3 carried out in circumstances justifying an objectively

4 reasonable belief that the search or seizure was in

5 conformity with the statute, administrative rule or

6 regulation, or rule of procedure, the violation of

7 which occasioned its being excludable.

8 ‘‘(c) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—This section shall

9 not be construed to require or authorize the exclusion of

10 evidence in any proceeding. Nothing in this section shall

11 be construed so as to violate the fourth article of amend12 ments to the Constitution of the United States.

13 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—This section shall not apply with

14 respect to a search or seizure carried out by, or under

15 the authority of, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and

16 Firearms.

17 ‘‘(e) LIMITATION.—This section shall not apply with

18 respect to a search or seizure carried out by, or under

19 the authority of, the Internal Revenue Service.’’.

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

21 at the beginning of chapter 223 of title 18, United States

22 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

‘‘3510. Admissibility of evidence obtained by search or seizure.’’.
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Passed the House of Representatives February 8,

1995.

Attest:

Clerk.

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 666

AN ACT

To control crime by exclusionary rule reform.