Exigent Circumstances

The term exigent circumstances covers an assortment of emergency situations that excuse the need for an arrest or search warrant or release officers from a warrant requirement to “knock and announce” their presence before entering a residence.

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution explicitly protects privacy in the home, and the U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted it to mean that, in the absence of consent or an emergency, an officer may not enter a home to make an arrest without first obtaining a warrant. Examples of exigent circumstances that might authorize a warrantless entry include situations of impending danger, the “hot pursuit” of a fleeing felon into a home, the need to prevent a suspect's escape, or the prospect of imminent destruction of evidence or property. Since it would be impractical or ineffective to require officers to obtain warrants in emergency situations such as these, warrantless arrests, searches, and/or seizures are considered to be reasonable. The same logic applies to “knock and announce” requirements: It is unnecessary for officers to broadcast their presence prior to executing an arrest or search warrant under circumstances that implicate the safety of the suspect, the officer, or others, or if the preservation of evidence is an issue.

Exigent circumstances present a need to act quickly. So, for instance, if an officer was aware of a violent brawl occurring in a home and reasonably believed that it was necessary to enter the home to prevent injury and restore the peace, the Fourth Amendment would not require the officer to secure a warrant before entering. A burning building, credible reports of a ticking bomb, or screams for help coming from an open window are all situations that may require immediate action and qualify as conditions that could justify a warrantless entry and search. If delaying an investigation to obtain a warrant would endanger the safety of a suspect, an officer, or a third party, a warrantless entry, search, and seizure could be permissible. If an officer is in pursuit of a suspected murderer who runs into a dwelling, a warrantless entry, arrest, and search incident to arrest may be constitutionally authorized.

For a warrantless entry, arrest, or search to pass constitutional muster, the exigent circumstances exception to the warrant requirement calls for a real emergency, or probable cause to believe that one exists. Such cases are fact specific, and a number of conditions factor into a determination of the practicality of obtaining an arrest or search warrant before an officer enters a residence. For example, if a suspect is thought to pose a threat to the safety of the police or others, the relevant considerations might include an assessment of the immediacy and gravity of the risk, the likelihood that a suspect is armed and dangerous, and whether there is an urgent need for emergency aid and assistance.

If an entry into a residence is for the purpose of preventing a suspect's escape, the constitutional requirement of a warrant may not be ignored if the suspect is neither fleeing nor likely to take flight, or if escape would be impossible. Additionally, the officer must have a reasonable belief that the suspect is inside the premises to be entered. The seriousness of the underlying offense is pertinent as well.

...