Exigent Circumstance Doctrine

The exigent circumstance doctrine, allows law enforcement officers, federal agents, trained medical practitioners and firefighters, to disregard the 4th amendment, and perform a warrantless breach and search of property, in order to fulfill a duty of care. The exigent circumstance doctrine states;

"Circumstances that would cause a reasonable person to believe that entry (or other relevant prompt action) was necessary to prevent physical harm to the officers/agents/EMT's/Firefighter or other persons, the destruction of relevant evidence, the escape of the suspect, or some other consequence improperly frustrating legitimate law enforcement efforts, medical practitioners or firefighters."

In order for the Exigent Circumstance Doctrine to be viable for use, the individual must be able to articulate a cause, which indicates an immediate physical threat to the officers/agents/EMT's/Firefighter or other persons, the destruction of relevant evidence, the escape of the suspect, or some other consequence improperly frustrating legitimate law enforcement efforts, medical practitioners or firefighters.

Examples:

• Officer A arrives at a domestic disturbance 911 call at an apartment complex. Upon standing next to the door, inside, the officer can hear disturbed screaming, smashing and shouting. Officer A articulates that he believed a female was being physically harmed, so he deemed it necessary to enter the property, to protect the female. He kicked open the door and saw a male subject beating a female victim. He apprehends and arrests the male subject.

• Officer A arrives at a 911 call stating an infant child has been locked in a home, for numerous hours, in the blazing heat. Upon arriving on scene, he can hear an infant child crying, and clearly audibly sounds distressed. Officer A makes the decision to kick the door down and enter the property, as he believes the infant child's life is in immediate harm and danger. Officer A finds an infant child wrapped in a woolly blanket, locked in a hot bedroom, with no water or ventilation.

Note: If the individual is unable to articulate a reason, for why the exigent circumstance doctrine was used [they cant state the reason foe violating the 4th amendment], then this would be considered as a violation of the 4th amendment. This can lead to any number of outcomes, including all evidence found being inadmissible [due to illegal and illegitimate search and seizure], prosecutors dropping the charges, lawsuits for the department, or even the Supreme Court Justice ruling it unconstitutional.