Statement of Assignment
You have asked me to prepare an office memorandum addressing the following question: Per statutory law and case law, was Mr. Darren Clavel’s Fourth Amendment rights violated when the police officers executed the search warrant?
Issue
U.S. CONST. amend. IV, did the police officers execute an unlawful search and seizure of Mr. Clavel’s home?
Brief Answer
Yes. Based on U.S. CONST. Amend. IV, the police officers executed an unlawful search of Mr. Clavel’s home when they knocked at the door, shouted “police, open up,” waited 15 seconds and forcibly entered the premises by kicking the door open. The plain clothed officers entered the premises without announcing their purpose and without providing Mr. Clavel with ample time to voluntarily open his door and surrender the premises for search.
Facts
Our client Mr. Clavel requests to suppress the evidence found in the potential unlawful search of his residence. When the police officers arrived at Mr. Clavel’s home with a search warrant, they knocked on the door and they shouted “Police, open up.” The police officers waited about 15 seconds before they kicked the door in and entered the premises to conduct a search. Mr. Clavel states that he
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DeMichel provides that the Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable searches and seizure while requiring law enforcement personnel to provide notice of their identity and announce their purpose when entering upon private premises. The court found it unreasonable for the officers to forcible enter the premises with first giving the occupant an opportunity to voluntarily surrender the premises. Our client’s Fourth Amendment rights were violated when the plain clothed officers entered the premises without announcing their purpose and without providing Mr. Clavel the appropriate time to voluntarily open his door and surrender the premises for search. The unlawful search and seizure led to Mr. Clavel’s charges of intent to distribute