Lange v. California
Issues
May police officers always enter a home without a warrant when they are pursuing a suspect whom they believe committed a misdemeanor?
This case asks the Supreme Court to weigh the privacy interests of individuals under the Fourth Amendment against the government’s interest in enforcing the law. Petitioner Arthur Lange (“Lange”) was arrested in his garage by a police officer who pursued him for violating traffic laws. Though a police officer with probable cause may generally only enter a home after obtaining a warrant, certain exigent circumstances may justify warrantless home entry, including the pursuit of a felony suspect. The United States, in support of affirmance, argues that this warrantless exception should extend to the pursuit of misdemeanor suspects as a category. Lange and Respondent California, both in support of vacatur, counter that a case-by-case exception is more appropriate given the wide variety of misdemeanor offenses. This case has broad implications for individual privacy interests, public safety, and policing.
Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties
Whether the pursuit of a person whom a police officer has probable cause to believe has committed a misdemeanor categorically qualifies as an exigent circumstance sufficient to allow the officer to enter a home without a warrant.
In the late evening of October 7, 2016, California Highway Patrol Officer Aaron Weikert observed Petitioner Arthur Gregory Lange (“Lange”) playing music loudly and honking repeatedly while driving. People v. Lange at 2. Officer Weikert began to tail Lange and approached within 500 feet of Lange with no cars in between them. Id. Officer Weikert turned on his overhead lights, signaling his intent to conduct a traffic stop.
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Additional Resources
- Jordan S. Rubin, High Court to Review Warrantless Searches for Misdemeanors, Bloomberg Law (Oct. 19, 2020).
- Jack Rodgers, Warrantless-Entry Tangle Faces High Court Unraveling, Courthouse News Service (Oct. 19, 2020).
- Sherry F. Colb, Can a Misdemeanor Count as an “Emergency” for Purposes of Skipping the Warrant?, Verdict (Dec. 30, 2020).