Legal Question in Constitutional Law in Washington

illegal entry

I was accidently shot with a shotgun in my home I did it a friend was here with me. I ask him to take me to the fire station in my car to get help I told my friend to take my car to the house and my roommate who owens the house would pick them up. police came they never talked to me but they did talk to him after I was lifeflighted the 2 officers ask him to follow them to my house and let them in so they could see where it happened my they did not contact my roommate to ask if they could enter the house my friend does not and did not have permission to let anybody including himself on the property or in the house we have a no tresspassing sign up that says there is a day use fee. the Officers and friend broke into our home and after my roommate got home he noticed 3 chainsaws & my shotgun missing he went to my friends house who lives three houses down and found 1 of them my questiopn is can the police enter our home without permission from the owner we feel that they have violated our consititutional rights by entering our and taking our property without us being there we contacted the DA but he refuses to return our calls or to see us when we go to his office can if file charges against the 3 of them in federal court!!


Asked on 12/09/06, 3:31 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Re: illegal entry

Police can enter a home without a warrant under a variety of circumstances, but nothing you have writen suggests that any of those circumstances were present here. The officers probably should have sought and (if a judge agreed) obtained a warrant before entering.

That said, I see no basis for criminal charges against the officers. You might theoretically have a civil claim against them for trespassing, but trespassing is a matter for the state courts and not the federal courts.

If the police took your gun and your chainsaws as evidence in an investigation you should be able to get confirmation from them that these items are being held for that purpose. If they simply made it possible for someone else to enter your house later and take them -- or if the officers stole these items themselves -- you might have a claim, but the amount of damages seems so small that this would most likely be a small claims case and nothing more.

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Answered on 12/09/06, 11:55 am


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