On June 23, 2021, the Supreme Court of the United States decided Lange v. California.[i]  The issue before the court was whether the pursuit of a fleeing misdemeanor suspect categorically allowed the police to enter the suspect’s residence without a warrant.  The relevant facts of Lange, taken directly from the case, are as follows: This case began when petitioner Arthur Lange drove past a California highway patrol officer in Sonoma. Lange, it is fair to say, was asking for attention: He was listening to loud music with his windows down and repeatedly honking his horn. The officer began to tail [...]

Much has been discussed in national news recently about police shooting suspects who are running away.  The media rarely provides their audience insight about the Constitutional law that applies in such situations.   This often leaves the public outraged because they perceive wrongdoing on the part of the police when, actually, the actions of the officer are supported by court precedent and generally accepted police practice upon which officers are trained.  With this in mind, we will first examine general principles regarding police use of force and then we will examine a case that illustrates how the principles are applied. The [...]

On May 28, 2020, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals decided Zuress v. City of Newark[i], in which the court examined whether a canine officer’s decision to release his dog and the dog's delay in releasing the bite, violated the Fourth Amendment. The relevant facts of Zuress, taken directly from the case, are as follows: City of Newark police were surveilling a house in Newark, Ohio, because a confidential informant had told them it was a drug house. At the same time, they were looking for Jeff Grooms—plaintiff Zuress's boyfriend and the brother of a resident of that [*2]  house—because he [...]

On May 28, 2020, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals decided the United States v. Ruffin[i], which serves as an excellent review of the three levels of officer citizen encounters and how officers progress through each level during an incident. The relevant facts of Ruffin, taken directly from the case, are as follows: Though Ruffin was eventually found guilty of a drug offense, the trail of events leading to his arrest began with a different crime. At approximately one o'clock on the morning of November 24, 2016, Tiffany Farmer, a Wilson, North Carolina resident, discovered that her car had been [...]

On May 1, 2020, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals decided the United States v. Neugin[i], which serves as an excellent review of the law related to the community caretaking exception to the requirements of the Fourth Amendment. The relevant facts of Neugin, taken directly from the case, are as follows: Cherokee Nation Deputy Buddy Clinton was dispatched to a restaurant parking lot to respond to a verbal altercation between Mr. Neugin and Ms. Parrish. Their pickup truck was broken down. Deputy Clinton arrived and found Mr. Neugin sitting on the curb. Ms. Parrish was in the restaurant. While Deputy [...]

On May 26, 2020, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals decided the United States v. Goebel[i], which serves as an excellent review of the law related to reasonable suspicion required to detain a suspicious person. The relevant facts of Goebel, taken directly from the case, are as follows: In June 2017, Roswell Police Officer Alex Barleen was on patrol at approximately 2:45 a.m. when he heard a report of a reckless driver. A short time later, he observed a car behind him make an abrupt turn onto another street, which in Officer Barleen's experience is consistent with impaired drivers or [...]