Article I, Section 7 of the present Tennessee Constitution (and all prior versions thereof) protect the peoples’ “possessions” from unreasonable (warrantless) searches and seizures. The use of the term “possessions” is at variance with and in addition to the provisions of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution which guarantees the people the right to be secure “…in their persons, houses, papers and effects.” The Tennessee Court of Appeals reiterated this proposition in its opinion in Rainwaters v. TWRA et al., 2024 WL 2078231 (Tenn. Ct. App. May 9, 2024). The case deals with private land that is not wild or waste land. At this writing it is not known whether the decision will be reviewed by the Tennessee Supreme Court.
