Also known as: exigent circumstance exception · exigent circumstances exceptions · exigent circumstances · emergency exception
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement that permits law enforcement officers to enter a home or conduct a search or seizure without a warrant when there is a compelling need to act immediately to prevent the imminent destruction of evidence or to protect life or safety. The government bears the burden of demonstrating that the circumstances were sufficiently exigent to justify the warrantless action. Minor offenses weigh against a finding of exigency.
Officers receive a tip that Edgar Evers committed a serious assault and is hiding inside his own residence. They approach the home without an arrest warrant and enter after hearing sounds of evidence being destroyed. The entry is upheld because the risk of immediate evidence loss created exigent circumstances that excused the warrant requirement.
Police respond to a report of a nonjailable traffic violation at Emily Ellis's home. They enter without a warrant after seeing her through the window. The court suppresses the evidence because the minor nature of the offense fails to support a finding of sufficient exigency to overcome the presumption against warrantless home entries.
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Elena Estrada is found unconscious after a crash with signs of intoxication. Officers order a warrantless blood draw to measure her blood alcohol level before the evidence dissipates. The draw is valid under the exigent circumstances exception because the driver cannot consent to a breath test and the alcohol is rapidly metabolizing.
Officers hold an arrest warrant for a suspect but enter the home of Ella Emerson without a search warrant to locate him. They discover incriminating items belonging to Emerson. The items are suppressed against her because exigent circumstances did not exist to justify the warrantless entry into a third party's residence.
After responding to a reported shooting at Eugene Ellsworth's apartment, officers remain for hours conducting a full search without a warrant. Evidence seized during the prolonged search is excluded because the initial emergency had ended and no ongoing exigent circumstances justified the extended warrantless intrusion.
Police arrest Erika Echevarria inside her home for a minor offense and then search the entire house without a warrant. Items found in distant rooms are suppressed because the arrest alone did not create exigent circumstances broad enough to permit a full home search beyond the immediate area of the arrest.
The government must demonstrate a compelling need to act immediately, such as the imminent destruction of evidence or protection of life, and that obtaining a warrant was not reasonably practicable. Minor offenses weigh heavily against finding sufficient exigency.
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Yes, when a driver is unconscious and unable to take a breath test, the rapid dissipation of alcohol in the blood can constitute exigent circumstances justifying a warrantless blood draw performed by medical personnel.
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No. An arrest warrant for a suspect does not authorize entry into a third party's home absent exigent circumstances or a separate search warrant for that home. Evidence found during an unauthorized entry is inadmissible against the homeowner.
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The seriousness of the offense is a key factor. Warrantless home entries are less likely to be upheld for minor or nonjailable offenses because the governmental interest is weaker relative to the privacy interest in the home.
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…of Appeals construed the phrase "serious risk" to include those circumstances. Id. , at 701. It stated: "[W]e read the medical emergency exception as intended by the Pennsylvania legislature to assure that compliance with its abortion regulations would not in any way pose a significant threat to the life or health of a woman." Ibid.…