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NJ: Officer sticking foot in door was Fourth Amendment entry

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Blocking the door so defendant could not close it and terminate his conversation with the police involved the “threshold” and thus was an entry into the house without exigent circumstances. Terry does not permit entry into homes on reasonable suspicion. However, the officer could arrest defendant for hurting the officer, and the search incident of his person was valid. The search of his house was not. State v. Jefferson, 2010 N.J. Super. LEXIS 87 (May 21, 2010): The trial court said, "the police were facing a potentially armed suspect who had not unequivocally indicated that he did not wish to speak to them." But defendant's possible willingness to speak to the police from inside his house did not translate into permission for them to enter...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on May 24, 2010 (boomark / email).