NCJ Number
174250
Journal
Crime to Court Volume: lice Officer's Handbook (June 1998) Issue: Dated: Pages: -
Date Published
1998
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This journal presents and comments on the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Ramirez (1998), which addressed the issue as to whether the legality of a no-knock entry is affected by damage to property; it also offers suggestions for enforcing laws against prostitution.
Abstract
The U.S. Supreme Court held in United States v. Ramirez that the police had a "reasonable suspicion" that knocking and announcing their presence might be dangerous to themselves or to others, based on an informant's information that a specific well- armed, violent prison escapee was present in the home. As for the manner in which the entry was accomplished, the Court concluded that the police only broke a single window in the respondent's garage, and this was done because they wished to discourage any occupants of the house from rushing to weapons the informant had reported were in the garage. The police conduct was held by the Court to be reasonable and did not violate any provision of the Fourth Amendment. Related cases explored in the "Legal Commentary" of this booklet are Bogan v. Scott-Harris, Wilson v. Arkansas, and Richards v. Wisconsin. The section of the book that suggests procedures for obtaining evidence and making arrests in prostitution cases focuses on undercover work by female officers in obtaining evidence to arrest "johns," on female undercover officers who infiltrate an escort agency, and on setting up a "sting" operation to obtain evidence on a prostitute.