What is the purpose of the Objective Reasonable Test (ORT)?

• A. Determine whether a search was properly authorized.
• B. Determine whether an arrest was actually committed.
• C. Determine reasonableness of police conduct.
• D. Determine whether evidence is admissible at trial.

Answer: (C)

The main idea being tested is whether police actions are judged by an objective standard of reasonableness under the Fourth Amendment. The Objective Reasonable Test asks: would a reasonably prudent officer, given the facts known at the time, have acted the same way? It focuses on the conduct itself from the perspective of a reasonable officer at the scene, not on the outcome alone. This is what determines whether police behavior was constitutional in terms of intrusion on individual rights. It isn’t about whether the officer had proper authorization to search (that’s about legal authority and process), nor about whether an arrest actually happened (that’s a factual event), and while the reasonableness of conduct can influence whether evidence is admissible, the test’s purpose is specifically to assess the reasonableness of the conduct itself.