Sentencing and searching in the Seventh Circuit

The Seventh Circuit today in US v. Barnett, No. 04-3646 (7th Cir. July 18, 2005) (available here) had ocassion to address “the validity of a blanket waiver of Fourth Amendment rights as a condition of probation.”  Judge Posner, writing for the court, notes that the defendant bargained to receive, instead of an imprisonment term, the probation sentence which included a waiver of Fourth Amendment rights.  Judge Posner, in turn, concludes that upholding the validity of the waiver properly gives both the defendant and the government the benefits of their rational bargain.