Supreme Court of the United States

Soldal v. Cook County, Illinois

December 8, 1992506 U.S. 56

Summary

Justice White delivered the unanimous opinion holding that the alleged forcible removal of the Soldals’ trailer home constituted a seizure under the Fourth Amendment, even without an invasion of privacy or liberty. The Amendment protects possessory interests and applies in civil as well as criminal settings, regardless of the government's purpose in effecting a seizure. The possible availability of a due process claim did not displace the Fourth Amendment’s specific protection. The Court reversed and remanded without deciding whether the seizure was unreasonable, reconsidering the appellate court’s state-action ruling, or addressing the substantive due process claim. There were no separate opinions.

Holding

  • Whether interference with possession of a home implicates the Fourth Amendment without an accompanying invasion of privacy or liberty.. The alleged physical removal of the Soldals’ trailer home constituted a seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment.
  • Whether the civil setting or noninvestigatory purpose of a seizure excludes it from Fourth Amendment protection.. Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable seizures applies in the civil context and does not depend on a law-enforcement or investigative purpose.
  • Whether a claim's asserted dominant due process character bars reliance on the Fourth Amendment.. The possibility that the conduct also implicates due process does not preclude a claim under the Fourth Amendment’s specific protection of property against unreasonable seizure.

Docket 91-6516

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