NCJ Number
158322
Journal
Crime to Court Police Officer's Handbook Dated: (October 1995) Pages: 1-13
Date Published
1995
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This police officer's handbook describes procedural and legal aspects of a case involving warrantless entry into a home and frisk and search of the occupant.
Abstract
In 1992, a resident of Fontana, California, called the police department to report what he believed was suspicious activity, possibly a burglary, in a house across the street. When police officers arrived to investigate, they found a television on at a low setting and dim lights. The police officers announced their presence but no one responded, and they entered the house through an open door. They searched the living room and the kitchen and then entered the bedroom where they found the house occupant. Satisfied that no burglary or other crime had occurred, the police officers left. The house occupant sued the Fontana Police Department for $20 million, contending that the police officers acted unreasonably when they conducted a warrantless search of the house and briefly seized the occupant. The court ruled in favor of the police department and the house occupant appealed. Legal aspects of the case are examined in terms of fourth amendment protection, exceptions to the warrant rule, the exigent circumstances exception, and probable cause. The author concludes that, from a legal perspective, the police officers acted appropriately in conducting the warrantless search. 5 photographs