Criminal Justice Procedure by Stacy C. Moak Ronald L. Carlson

Author:Stacy C. Moak, Ronald L. Carlson [Stacy C. Moak, Ronald L. Carlson]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781138131873
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Published: 2015-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

8.4 Other Exigencies to the Warrant Requirement

Other than airports and borders, certain circumstances arise that make obtaining a warrant to search particularly burdensome for law enforcement. If the circumstances create enough of an emergency, the Court has upheld the warrantless search. Each of these cases is determined on a case-by-case analysis of the particular facts unique to the situation. The cases generally turn on the degree of exigency presented by the facts. For example, a warrantless murder scene search, where there is no indication that evidence would be lost, destroyed, or removed during the time required to obtain a search warrant and there is no suggestion that a warrant could not easily be obtained, is inconsistent with the Fourth Amendment because the situation does not create exigent circumstances of the kind that would justify a warrantless search.d

Mincey v. Arizona, 437 U.S. 385 (1978)

Facts During a narcotics raid on Mincey's apartment, an undercover officer was shot and killed and Mincey and others were wounded. Pursuant to police department policy that officers should not investigate incidents in which they are involved, officers at the scene took no action other than to look for other wounded people and to render medical assistance. About ten minutes after the shooting, homicide investigators arrived at the scene and took charge of the investigation. These officers conducted an extensive search of the apartment that lasted four days, included opening drawers and ripping up carpets, and resulted in the seizure of 200 to 300 objects. The items seized were admitted into evidence during trial. Mincey was convicted of murder, assault, and narcotics offenses.

Issue Does the scene of a homicide represent exigent circumstances that would create an additional exception to the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment? NO

Supreme Court Decision "The 'murder scene exception' created by the Arizona Supreme Court to the warrant requirement is inconsistent with the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments, and the warrantless search of petitioner's apartment was not constitutionally permissible simply because a homicide had occurred there."

Reason "[W]hen the police come upon the scene of a homicide, they may make a prompt warrantless search of the area to see if there are other victims or if a killer is still on the premises... .And the police may seize any evidence that is in plain view during the course of their legitimate emergency activities... .But a warrantless search must be 'strictly circumscribed by the exigencies which justify its initiation,' Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S., at 25-26, and it simply cannot be contended that this search was justified by any emergency threatening life or limb... .We decline to hold that the seriousness of the offense under investigation itself creates exigent circumstances of the kind that under the Fourth Amendment justify a warrantless search."

Case Significance This case is best understood as an issue under the "exigent circumstances" exception to the warrant requirement. The general rule is that a search warrant must be obtained prior to a search. Among the many exceptions, however, is the presence of exigent circumstances. In

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