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WY: Locking door on live-in girlfriend who had her key did not nullify her ability to consent to entry

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Defendant locked his live-in girlfriend out of the house during an argument, but she had her key. When the police arrived because of the domestic disturbance, they could rely on her claim of authority to enter because she had a key. Baker v. State, 2010 WY 6, 2010 Wyo. LEXIS 7 (January 20, 2010)*: [*P13] Here, the facts known to the officers at the time of the search support the conclusion that Merck had the authority to consent to a search of the residence. Merck reported a domestic disturbance from her home at the hands of her live-in boyfriend. She expected her boyfriend (Baker) to not answer the door, and told the officers that they could go inside the home, and she unlocked the back door with her own key from her personal keychain...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on January 27, 2010 (boomark / email).