Supreme Court Backs Police Entry Without Warrant in Emergencies [View all]

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https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/us/politics/supreme-court-montana-warrantless-entry.html

https://archive.ph/knWFd

Supreme Court Backs Police Entry Without Warrant in Emergencies
Montana officials defended the actions of law enforcement officers who did not have a warrant when they responded to a possibly suicidal Army veteran.
By Ann E. Marimow
Jan. 14, 2026 Updated 4:11 p.m. ET

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said law enforcement officials had flexibility to enter a home without a warrant based on reports that someone inside might need emergency help, a decision with implications for police tactics and the expectation of privacy in one’s home.

In a unanimous decision, the justices said that the police in Montana had acted appropriately when they entered an Army veteran’s home without a warrant because they had an “‘objectively reasonable basis for believing’ that a homeowner intended to take his own life and, indeed, may already have shot himself,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the court.

The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution prohibits unreasonable searches and provides protections for a person’s home by generally prohibiting law enforcement from entering without a warrant.

The Supreme Court has carved out several exceptions, including for when police believe an occupant is seriously injured or facing an imminent threat of injury.

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