Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States Essay

Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States - Essay Example As the report declares the Appellants filed their suit on the grounds that there had been an abuse of the Fourteenth Amendment, since their property had been seized without â€Å"due process of law† and this case has become a landmark case of sorts in ensuring that an opportunity is provided to the person whose property is being seized to appear before the Court and plead his case. This paper stresses that due process of law involves giving the affected party the right to a hearing before the property is seized. But a hearing is not always constituted to be a necessary requirement of execution of the due process clause. There are certain cases where an ex parte complaint may be sufficient procedural notice to justify seizure of property. In Fuentes v Shevin, these were identified as being necessary to secure important Government interest there is a special need for prompt seizure and there is some overriding circumstance that justifies such an action. Justice Powell stated that procedural due process could also be satisfied on the â€Å"factual basis of the need to resort to a remedy.† This is an extremely important aspect to be considered, because all too often, criminals have invoked the Fifth Amendment as a means to avoid answering for their crimes. Under the tough criminal atmosphere that prevails today, the question of the individual liberty to rema in silent under incriminating circumstances or to have the right to demand due process such as a hearing before legal action can be taken, is subject to debate.