What is the Community Caretaking Exception and How Does it Affect Your Right Against Illegal Search and Seizure by Police in your Illegal gun or drug case?
Our Criminal Defense law represents people charged with crimes and offenses in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Many of these criminal cases involve the illegal possession of drugs, narcotics, guns and firearms. A critical issue in these cases is your right against illegal search and seizure!
What Does The 4th Amendment Protect?
The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution protect citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures.” “To secure the right of citizens to be free from [unreasonable searches and seizures], courts in Pennsylvania require law enforcement officers to demonstrate ascending levels of suspicion to justify their interactions with citizens as those interactions become more intrusive.”
3 Types of Police Encounters
Police encounters are classified as follows: (1) mere encounters, which require no suspicion that criminal activity is afoot; (2) investigative detentions, which require reasonable suspicion; and (3) custodial detentions, which require probable cause.
What is the Community Caretaker Exception?
One exception to this requirement is contained in the community caretaking doctrine. The community caretaking doctrine includes the following three exceptions: “the emergency aid exception; the automobile impoundment/inventory exception; and the public servant exception, also sometimes referred to as the public safety exception.” The community caretaker exception is only invoked when the police are not engaged in crime-solving activities.
With respect to Fourth Amendment guaranties, this is the key distinction: the defining characteristic of community caretaking functions is that they are totally unrelated to the criminal investigation duties of the police.”
Actions taken therefore to render aid do not offend constitutional principles, because police are motivated by a ‘desire to render aid or assistance, rather than the investigation of criminal activity.
What is Required for the Caretaker Exception?
For a police officer’s conduct to fall within the community caretaking exception, the following must be true:
(1) the officer must point to specific, objective, and articulable facts which would reasonably suggest to an experienced officer that assistance was needed;
(2) the police action must be independent from the detection, investigation, and acquisition of criminal evidence; and,
(3) based on a consideration of the surrounding circumstances, the action taken by police must be tailored to rendering assistance or mitigating the peril.
Once assistance has been provided or the peril mitigated, further police action will be evaluated under traditional Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. When the community caretaking exception is involved to validate a search or seizure, courts must meticulously consider the facts and carefully apply the exception in a manner that mitigates the risk of abuse.
If you have more question about this very important issue, contact our law firm today
Contact Our Criminal Defense Lawyers in PA & NJ Please click here to contact our criminal defense lawyers. We offer free case reviews and serve the following areas in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Atlantic City, Camden, Cherry Hill, Chester, Conshohocken, Doylestown, Media, Norristown, Philadelphia, Pottstown, Salem, Upper Darby, Upper Merion, Upper Providence, Vineland & Woodbury areas
