Opinion ID: 2975640
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Exceptions To Warrant Requirement

Text: Given that Taylor had an expectation of privacy in his home and the surrounding curtilage, the next issue is whether a basis for the police action existed. First we consider the exigent circumstances exceptions to getting a warrant. The Sixth Circuit has held that: In general, exigent circumstances exist when real immediate and serious consequences would certainly occur if a police officer were to postpone action to get a warrant. The exigent circumstances exception relies on the premise that the existence of an emergency situation, demanding urgent police action, may excuse the failure to procure a search warrant. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has identified the emergency situations giving rise to the exigent circumstances exception to the warrant requirement as (1) hot pursuit of a fleeing felon, (2) imminent destruction of evidence, (3) the need to prevent a suspect's escape, or (4) a risk of danger to the police or others. See United States v. McClain, 430 F.3d 299, 304 (6th Cir. 2005) Here, no exigent circumstances justify Rose’s warrantless search. No. 05-2732 Taylor v. Mich. Dep’t of Natural Resources, et al. Page 10 In the first place, one can ask the ex ante question as to whether Rose had probable cause to get a warrant to search the house. Rose was within his rights to go to the house to attempt to contact the homeowner regarding his visit, but Rose’s stated purpose for going to the house was his suspicion about a burglar/trespasser. He saw tire tracks and footprints leading to the home. By themselves, these facts do not point in any particular direction. The tracks could just as well have belonged to the homeowner as to a trespasser. Similarly, with respect to the open curtains, they might just as well signal that the homeowner is at home, or might simply be an aesthetic choice. Still, Rose maintains that his years of experience taught him that burglars often leave curtains open in order to watch for oncoming homeowners. These circumstances do not rise to the level of exigent circumstances. There was no hot pursuit of a fleeing felon; there was no concern about imminent destruction of evidence; there was no need to prevent a suspect’s escape (indeed, there was no suspect!); and there was no risk of danger to police or others. While one could perhaps contend that fear of a burglar/trespasser might give rise to this last exception, the circumstances, and Rose’s behavior, both speak to the contrary. As discussed previously, tire tracks are ambiguous; they might merely have indicated that Taylor was on the property. They certainly are not clear harbingers of risk to the police or others. Similarly, Rose’s behavior on Taylor’s property did not indicate any danger, let alone risk of danger qualifying as exigent circumstances. Rose walked leisurely around the property, at times with both hands in his pockets. He never took out his weapon nor appeared concerned about any potential risk to his safety. Based on the facts then, Rose’s search was not justified by the exigent circumstances exception. Similarly, the “community caretaking” exception does not apply to the facts of this case. The district court categorized the purposes of Rose’s search as “community caretaking.” The Supreme Court, in Cady v. Dombrowksi, 413 U.S. 433, 441 (1973), describes community caretaking as those actions that are “totally divorced from the detection, investigation, or acquisition of evidence relating to the violation of a criminal statute.” While in Cady the Court held that a warrantless search of a vehicle’s trunk for a weapon following the arrest of a police officer for drunk driving was incidental to the police function to protect the “safety of the general public,” the Court’s conclusion that the search was constitutional was premised in part on the Court’s “prior recognition of the distinction between motor vehicles and dwelling places.” Id. at 447. Case law indicates that the community caretaking function articulated in Cady has been principally applied to the warrantless searches of automobiles. See United States v. Bute, 43 F.3d 531, 535 (10th Cir. 1994) (holding that the community caretaking exception to the warrant requirement is applicable only in cases involving automobile searches); see also United States v. Erickson, 991 F.2d 529, 531 (9th Cir. 1993) (holding that the fact that a police officer is performing a community caretaking function, however, cannot itself justify a warrantless search of a private residence). The Sixth Circuit makes it clear that “the community care-taking function of the police applies only to actions that are totally divorced from the detection, investigation, or acquisition of evidence relating to the violation of a criminal statute.” United States v. Williams, 354 F.3d 497, 508 (6th Cir. 2003) (citation omitted). With that in mind, it is clear that Rose’s conduct does not fall within the sanctuary of community caretaking. First, Rose’s search of Taylor’s property was not an automobile search. Second, by Taylor’s own admission, he walked around and peered into Taylor’s home because he was worried about a potential burglar/trespasser. Therefore, the very nature of this search was centered upon, not divorced from, detection, investigation, or acquisition of evidence relating to the violation of a criminal statute. Therefore, it is inappropriate to apply the community caretaking exception to the facts of this case.