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DC: One witness with hearsay did not prove exigency for hot pursuit entry for robber; had to be "trustworthy hearsay"

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Reliance on one witness hearsay to prove exigency for hot pursuit of an armed robber was insufficient. In re K.H., 2011 D.C. App. LEXIS 107 (D.C. March 3, 2011): ... Thus, although the District claims the police did not need a warrant to enter apartment three because they were in hot pursuit of an armed robber, it still bore the burden of proving the police had probable cause to believe the robber had entered that apartment minutes earlier. In our view, the District did not carry that burden. Instead of offering the testimony of one of the officers who entered apartment three in pursuit of the fleeing robber, it relied exclusively on the hearsay testimony of Detective Thompson, a witness who possessed no personal knowledge of the entry. Trustworthy hearsay is admissible in a suppression hearing and may justify a finding of probable cause...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on March 06, 2011 (boomark / email).