What does the Good Faith Exception protect against?

The Good Faith Exception is a legal principle that protects law enforcement officers from being held liable for evidence obtained through a search that is later found to be illegal due to a mistake, provided that the officers acted in good faith and believed they were following the law. This means that if officers execute a search warrant that they reasonably believe is valid, but it turns out the warrant was, for example, issued improperly or without sufficient probable cause, the evidence obtained during that search may still be admissible in court.

This exception acknowledges that law enforcement professionals can make honest mistakes during their duties and aims to strike a balance between protecting individual rights against unlawful searches and allowing police to perform their functions without the fear of being penalized for genuine errors made in the belief they were acting within legal boundaries.

In contrast, the other answer choices relate to broader contexts of legality in searches and evidence. The Good Faith Exception specifically addresses situations involving isolated mistakes and does not apply to systemic issues, such as massive illegal searches or evidence obtained while ignoring warrant requirements altogether.