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DonViejo

(60,536 posts)
Fri Apr 19, 2013, 05:57 PM Apr 2013

Can the Police Search My Home for a Bomber?


Why the door-to-door manhunt for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev doesn’t violate the Constitution.

By Katy Waldman|Posted Friday, April 19, 2013, at 3:43 PM


SWAT teams descended on the Boston suburb of Watertown on Friday morning to conduct a door-to-door search for the Boston Marathon bombing suspect left alive after a convenience store robbery, car chase, and shootout Thursday night. Is it legal for the police to search your house without a warrant?

It can be. Under the Fourth Amendment, a judge issues a warrant if police can demonstrate that a search is “reasonable”—that there is “probable cause” to investigate a house, car, or backyard for evidence. But there are plenty of circumstances under which police can perform searches without invoking probable cause.

If you consent to a police search, officers do not need a warrant to enter your home. If you have a housemate, he or she can allow the police to rummage through common areas, such as the living room or the kitchen, but not private areas, such as your closet or bedroom.

In exigent circumstances, or emergency situations, police can conduct warrantless searches to protect public safety. This exception to the Fourth Amendment’s probable cause requirement normally addresses situations of “hot pursuit,” in which an escaping suspect is tracked to a private home. But it might also apply to the events unfolding in Boston if further harm or injury might be supposed to occur in the time it takes to secure a warrant. A bomber believed to be armed and planning more violence would almost certainly meet such prerequisites.

Furthermore, police may enter a private residence to provide emergency assistance to an occupant—which may include apprehending a suspected terrorist who also happens to be inside. And if they plan to make an arrest in someone’s home, they can undertake a “protective sweep” of the dwelling first to confirm that no weapons or accomplices are stashed away where they can do damage later.

full article:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2013/04/boston_bomber_manhunt_is_the_watertown_door_to_door_search_by_police_for.html?wpisrc=newsletter_jcr:content
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Can the Police Search My Home for a Bomber? (Original Post) DonViejo Apr 2013 OP
I feel for those not home who have their doors caved in.... hlthe2b Apr 2013 #1
When they were searching for Chis Dorner in Big Bear, CA, they did not enter vacant homes. FarCenter Apr 2013 #2
Who has had their doors caved in?? kestrel91316 Apr 2013 #5
I'm speaking in general about when swat or other LEO does so hlthe2b Apr 2013 #6
Are they forcing doors of unoccupied homes? ProgressiveProfessor Apr 2013 #3
Unrelated to the OP... Earth_First Apr 2013 #4

hlthe2b

(101,728 posts)
1. I feel for those not home who have their doors caved in....
Fri Apr 19, 2013, 06:00 PM
Apr 2013

I wonder what, if any, measures are normally taken to secure the dwelling afterwards if it is left unoccupied for some amount of time.

 

FarCenter

(19,429 posts)
2. When they were searching for Chis Dorner in Big Bear, CA, they did not enter vacant homes.
Fri Apr 19, 2013, 06:04 PM
Apr 2013

IIRC, Dorner was in a vacant condo near a police station and was only discovered when a housekeeper entered the condo.

hlthe2b

(101,728 posts)
6. I'm speaking in general about when swat or other LEO does so
Fri Apr 19, 2013, 06:25 PM
Apr 2013

in an emergent situation. And, yes, they do on occasion do so.

Earth_First

(14,910 posts)
4. Unrelated to the OP...
Fri Apr 19, 2013, 06:10 PM
Apr 2013

CBS was recently reporting that the 7/11 robbery was unrelated to the bombing suspects.

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