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CA4: exigent circumstances justified going to second floor to make arrest, and it later was determined that they were in the wrong house

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Officers mistakenly yet reasonably believed that an armed fugitive was on the premises and they had an arrest warrant for him. His distinguishing feature was a tattoo under his eye. Officers were let in the house by one with authority to consent (the validity of consent is a given), and they said they were looking for a guy with a tattoo under his eye. While they were not in the right house, coincidentally a person upstairs had a tattoo under his eye, and they were directed upstairs. Heading up the stairs, appellant encountered them and ordered them out of the house without a search warrant. The went upstairs and found a man hiding in a closet. A search incident of the room found a silencer and three guns. The search was valid by exigent circumstances...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on January 03, 2010 (boomark / email).