W.D.Va.: Ongoing DV disturbance is exigency for a warrantless entry

“When Officer Hill entered Gates’s home, he held the reasonable belief that a violent domestic disturbance was ongoing, and that a woman was present in the residence and involved in the disturbance. This gave rise to a reasonable belief in a present emergency, justifying his warrantless entry. Once inside, Officer Hill held a warrant for Gates’s arrest. … Officer Hills’s search of Gates’s person, leading to the discovery the firearm, was appropriate under the Fourth Amendment. United States v. Robinson, 414 U.S. 218, 224, 94 S. Ct. 467, 38 L. Ed. 2d 427 (1973) (‘It is well settled that a search incident to a lawful arrest is a traditional exception to the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment.’).” United States v. Gates, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 210993 (W.D. Va. Dec. 6, 2019).

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