NCJ Number
153783
Journal
Crime to Court Police Officer's Handbook Dated: (March 1995) Pages: complete issue
Date Published
1995
Length
27 pages
Annotation
In looking at the legality of warrantless police entry into a home, this handbook notes that the U.S. Supreme Court has consistently emphasized the sanctity of the home but has approved language that allows warrantless police entry in certain cases, including cases based on the emergency doctrine.
Abstract
The case of interest involved an Illinois professor who had fallen into a deep sleep after drinking in his home. When his wife could not wake him up, she became concerned and called the hospital emergency department and requested an ambulance. When the paramedics arrived, the husband woke up and ordered them out of his house. Because he became "belligerent and uncooperative," the paramedics called the police department for assistance. After continuing verbal abuse, he was taken to the hospital and then to jail. He brought suit against the paramedics and the police department, arguing that his constitutional rights had been violated since he had been seized from his home without a warrant or probable cause. The trial judge dismissed the lawsuit, recognizing that emergency situations sometimes justify warrantless police entry and that entry in the case was reasonable and based on probable cause since a paramedic said he saw the man strike his wife. Legal commentary is offered on emergency entry into the home, the justification of warrantless police entry, the impact of illegal police entry on evidence found, probable cause to arrest, and the distinction between emergency entry and exigent circumstances entry.