CA10: 911 domestic violence call supported exigency even though last actual violence was two days earlier

911 domestic violence call supported exigency even though last actual violence was two days earlier. The caller was hiding in the basement calling the police terrified if she came out. United States v. Gordon, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 1524 (10th Cir. January 27, 2014):

Barney’s initial entry was reasonable due to exigent circumstances. Although the actual violence had occurred two days previously, at the time Barney entered the home, dispatch had, correctly, reported several things to the responding officers: Thaxton was too frightened to leave the basement; she was upset, crying, and afraid she would be seriously harmed when Gordon discovered she had contacted the police. Any officer could reasonably believe an unprotected victim in that situation was in imminent danger of serious harm. But that does not end the reasonableness debate because a search must be reasonable not only in its inception but also in its execution. See Wilson v. Layne, 526 U.S. 603, 611, 119 S. Ct. 1692, 143 L. Ed. 2d 818 (1999) (“‘If the scope of the search exceeds that permitted by the terms of a validly issued warrant or the character of the relevant exception from the warrant requirement, the subsequent seizure is unconstitutional without more.'”) (quoting Horton v. California, 496 U.S. 128, 140, 110 S. Ct. 2301, 110 L. Ed. 2d 112 (1990) (emphasis added)).