Why was the constitutional convention called [1. Reference the letter and who wrote it. 2. State the main problem in the letter 3. Provide at least two quotes from the letter that provide evidence of the problem. 4. Explain what will happen if the problem is left unfixed

INTRODUCTION 979 I. THE STRUCTURE OF THE FOURTH AMENDMENT AND ITS DISPUTED HISTORICAL MEANING982 II. JOHN ADAMS AND THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT: 1761 TO 1780 989

A. HISTORICAL CONTEXT 989 B. JOHN ADAMS AND THE WRITS OF ASSISTANCE CASE 992 C. THE ENGLISH GENERAL WARRANT CASES 979 D. JOHN ADAMS’S LIBRARY 1012 E. ADAMS AS LITIGATOR AND OBSERVER 1018 F. ADAMS AS DELEGATE TO THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS1026

III. 1776 TO 1791: THE EVOLUTION OF SEARCH AND SEIZURE PROVISIONS 1027 A. ARTICLE 14 AND OTHER EARLY SEARCH AND SEIZURE PROVISIONS1027 B. THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1787 1029 C. THE CONFEDERATION CONGRESS 1030 D. THE RATIFICATION OF THE CONSTITUTION BY THE STATES1031 E. THE DRAFTING OF THE FOURTH AMENDMENT 1044

IV. ADAMS’S VIEWS AND INFLUENCE1052 CONCLUSION1060

INTRODUCTION

Courts and scholars seeking the original understanding of the Fourth Amendment have confronted two fundamental questions: what practices was the amendment designed to regulate; and how should a constitution regulate such practices? To inform the answers to those questions, this Article offers a new perspective of, and information on, the historical record regarding the framing of the amendment. It also presents for the first time a detailed examination of John Adams’s fundamental influence on the language and structure of the amendment and his knowledge of, and views on, how to regulate searches and seizures.

Most of the language and structure of the Fourth Amendment was primarily the work of one man, John Adams. Adams was an important person for many other reasons, including as the second President of the United States. His life is the subject of many biographies; his letters, works, and extensive writings are a rich source of material. Less studied and understood, however, are his knowledge of, and views on, search and seizure and his role in formulating the principles to regulate those governmental actions. Upon examination, Adams stands out in that era as having profound opportunities to examine search and seizure practices and as having the most important role in formulating the language and structure of the Fourth Amendment. If the intent of the framers is a fundamental consideration in

Explanation:

the declaration states, “we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness….”