Missing gun and confederate was exigent circumstance for warrantless entry into defendant’s motel room
FourthAmendment.com:
There were exigent circumstances for the warrantless entry of defendant’s hotel room after his arrest outside because of a missing gun and likely confederates having access to them. United States v. Granados, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 90044 (D. S.D. November 4, 2008):
Exigent circumstances also supported the warrantless entry into Granados’ hotel room. The task force reasonably believed that it was necessary to immediately arrest the person traveling with Morales to protect public safety. Morales was known to have had guns and a knife in the past, and no weapons were found on his person or in the Expedition after he was arrested. Morales had located and visited the CI’s family seeking payment for a past delivery of marijuana. The controlled transaction took place on a Saturday evening while hotel guests and employees were moving about the hotel and parking lot and civilians were sitting alongside the street near the Kelly Inn to watch a motorcycle event. Further, based on the facts set out above, members of the task force had reason to believe that a third person was traveling with Morales and was waiting for him in Room 250. It was reasonable to assume that the third person may have been watching the transaction and arrest from his hotel room or was alerted by Morales’ failure to return with the money that something had gone wrong. See United States v. Padilla, 869 F.2d 372, 379-80 (8th Cir. 1989) (arrestee’s failure to communicate with suspect may have signaled that the deal had gone sour). The task force was justified in entering Granados’ room without a warrant because of its reasonable belief that it was necessary to protect the general public, hotel guests and employees, the CI’s family, and the officers and agents themselves from a possible violent action from Morales’…