My point in writing these ditties, in addition to shameless self-promotion, is to try to demonstrate how various issues in the news would play out in the world of lawyers. I try to give equal time to cops shooting fleeing felons and the Nunes memo. The cop piece was...
Warrants
When Police Knock on the Door: What Are My Rights?
The Police knock on your door. Now what? As mentioned in previous articles on this blog, any warrantless search or seizure is unlawful – without a jealously guarded exception to the warrant requirement. What are the exceptions? Consent is an exception. In State...
Happy Fourth of July! The Supreme Court Got It Right In Riley v. California
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Oak Harbor, Seattle, and King, Island, Skagit, Snohomish, and Whatcom County provides a quick, unedited blurb about how the Supreme Court was correct in its June 25, 2014 opinion. The Supreme Court recently issued its opinion in Riley...
Can Your Smart Phone be Searched Without a Warrant?
The law evolves along with technology. For example, early strict liability law concerned non-domestic or exotic animals: an owner of a lion, bear, or other wild beast would be strictly liable for damage caused by such an animal regardless of degree of care exercised...
The Future Of Our “Rights”: Punishment For Exercising The Right To Withhold Consent From Warrantless Searches?
A Minnesota appellate court recently appears to have claimed that the state may criminalize a person’s refusal to consent to a warrantless search if the officer could have hypothetically obtained a warrant. You can read the opinion here. This is dangerous. It has long...
Domestic Violence and the Home in Washington State (PART 2)
In part 1, we discussed what is required for law enforcement to make a warrantless entry into the home. The state must prove each of the following elements of the emergency aid exception to the warrant requirement: The police officer subjectively believed that...
Domestic Violence and the Home in Washington State
The law has recognized that “every man’s home is his castle.” This does not mean that a homeowner can do whatever he or she pleases or engage in abuse. For example, Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens has recently seen that he is not above the law. But it is true that...