You know that the police can enter your house if they have a search warrant. There are still some restrictions, such as information regarding when they can execute that warrant, what part of your house they’re allowed to search and what evidence they’re supposed to look for. But if they have the warrant, you have to let them inside the home.
But say that there are police officers at your house, and you know they don’t have a warrant yet because they admitted it. Is there any situation in which they could still enter your property?
If you provide consent
To begin with, the police always have the option to simply ask to come inside. Some people feel like they have to give consent just because it’s a police officer who is asking. Remember that you are not obligated to do so. If you do, then the officer can come inside and look around legally. But you can also tell them that you’re not providing consent and that they need to get a warrant and come back.
If there’s an emergency
In some rare situations, there may be an emergency that allows the police to enter even if they don’t have time to get a warrant. One example is if they think that there’s evidence in the house that is actively being destroyed, so they need to preserve it, and they have to act quickly. Another example could be if they think people in the home are in danger or if they’re in hot pursuit of a suspect that they just watched enter the house.
Exactly how the police conduct their search can affect what evidence they obtain and whether or not they’re allowed to use it at trial. It’s important to understand all of your legal defense options moving forward.