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State v. Fitzgerald

Supreme Court of Minnesota
Apr 17, 1997
562 N.W.2d 288 (Minn. 1997)

Summary

holding that entry was unlawful as it was based on one-day-old information and the circumstances generally did "not suggest the kind of emergency that would justify a warrantless entry"

Summary of this case from State v. Lemieux

Opinion

No. C8-96-424.

April 17, 1997.

Appeal from the District Court, Franklin J. Knoll, J.

Jay M. Heffern, Minneapolis City Atty., Timothy T. Mulrooney, Asst. Minneapolis City Atty., Minneapolis, Hubert H. Humphrey III, Atty. Gen., St. Paul, for respondent.

John Scanlan, Hinckley, for appellant.

Considered and decided by the court en banc.


OPINION


Defendant Nancy Irene Fitzgerald was convicted of boarding unlicensed dogs and failing to clean up dog waste. Her main argument on appeal is that the police made an unlawful warrantless entry into her residence and that the subsequent search warrant was based on information obtained during that illegal entry. The state counters, arguing that the informant's report, which included information that the occupant of the residence "may need help," justified the emergency exception to the warrant requirement and that, in any event, there was sufficient validly obtained information to justify the issuance of the search warrant. The court of appeals, in an unpublished 2-1 decision, affirmed the convictions.

This is not an appropriate case in which to address in any detail the general issue of the warrantless entry of a residence to aid a person in need of assistance. For a discussion of the general issue, see 3 Wayne R. LaFave, Search and Seizure: A Treatise on the Fourth Amendment § 6.6(a) (3d ed. 1996). In this case we merely conclude that the state failed to meet its burden of proving that there was an emergency justifying a warrantless entry into defendant's residence pursuant to the emergency exception. The fact that the unidentified informant waited until the following day after making observations to call the police suggests that there was no emergency. Moreover, the content of the informant's report, as related by the police officer in his testimony at the omnibus hearing, certainly does not suggest the kind of emergency that would justify a warrantless entry.

We reverse the decision of the court of appeals affirming the convictions, and we remand to the trial court for further proceedings. The trial court on remand is instructed to address the issue of whether there was sufficient other validly and independently obtained information to justify the issuance of the search warrant.

Reversed and remanded to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.


Summaries of

State v. Fitzgerald

Supreme Court of Minnesota
Apr 17, 1997
562 N.W.2d 288 (Minn. 1997)

holding that entry was unlawful as it was based on one-day-old information and the circumstances generally did "not suggest the kind of emergency that would justify a warrantless entry"

Summary of this case from State v. Lemieux

holding that the emergency-aid exception did not apply when an unidentified informant told police that a potential victim "may need help"

Summary of this case from State v. Klein

finding that the state bears the burden of establishing the existence of an emergency justifying a warrantless entry under the emergency exception to the warrant requirement

Summary of this case from State v. Johnson

concluding that emergency-aid exception did not apply when police entered residence on information that a person "may need help," submitted to police the following day

Summary of this case from Kulla v. Comm'r of Pub. Safety

determining exception did not apply when police had vague understanding that potential victim "may need help"

Summary of this case from State v. Iepson

stating that the state bears "burden of proving that there was an emergency justifying a warrantless entry * * * pursuant to the emergency exception"

Summary of this case from State v. Grunig
Case details for

State v. Fitzgerald

Case Details

Full title:STATE of Minnesota, Respondent, v. Nancy Irene FITZGERALD, Appellant

Court:Supreme Court of Minnesota

Date published: Apr 17, 1997

Citations

562 N.W.2d 288 (Minn. 1997)

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The emergency-aid exception does not apply when a police officer has merely a vague understanding that a…