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CA7: Man with a gun known to use it was exigent circumstance

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Exigent circumstances existed for a warrantless entry of a house for a man with a gun who was known to use it. The fact he was asleep did not lessen the threat. United States v. Huddleston, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 1768 (7th Cir. January 27, 2010)*: Here, the officers were told that Huddleston--whom they knew to have a criminal history involving the discharge of a firearm--had a gun and was trespassing in the home of a woman whom he had threatened to kill earlier that evening. Based on those facts, it was reasonable for the officers to conclude that they were dealing with an armed man poised to carry out a death threat, who would not hesitate to discharge his weapon as he had in the past. In these circumstances, the officers had reasonable grounds to believe that Huddleston posed an immediate threat to their safety and the safety of others in the neighborhood...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on January 29, 2010 (boomark / email).