What happened? A neighbor requested a welfare check without confirming any real emergency. When that neighbor finally answered the pounding on the door, an officer wedged his foot to force open the door under the “community caretaking” doctrine and arrested the neighbor when they tried to push him back out the door.
What would you like to see happen? I think there should be a mandatory pre-registration or authorization process before a police welfare-check. Only people on the householder’s approved list should be able to trigger a police welfare-check.
How do you think others can help? I think it’s by learning and sharing our Fourth Amendment rights: either of us may lawfully refuse entry and ask officers to obtain a warrant unless they have clear evidence of imminent danger. (2) Distribute plain-language guides on handling welfare checks, consent refusals, and the limits of exigent-circumstances to enter our homes.
For more information or to offer a productive response to this mate3 answer set, please contact Bill by email at mate3@mate3.com. It’s our mission to find, connect and provide productive responses to what people say happened to them.
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