What is a “no-knock” warrant? A no-knock warrant is a search warrant
authorizing police officers to enter certain premises without first
knocking and announcing their presence or purpose prior to entering
the property. Such warrants are issued where an entry in accordance
with the knock-and-announce rule (ie. an announcement prior to entry)
would lead to the destruction of the objects (i.e. evidence) for which
the police are searching or would compromise the safety of the police
or another individual. Cornell Law School, Legal Information Institute.
Use of no-knock warrants has increased substantially over time. By one
estimate, there were 1,500 annually in the early 1980s whereas there
were 45,000 in 2010. Lovan, Dylan; Kunzelman, Michael; Sainz, Adrian
(June 1, 2020). “Deadly police raid fuels call to end ‘no knock’ warrants”.
Associated Press. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
No-knock warrants may be issued in every state except Oregon (where
state law bans no-knock warrants) and Florida (in which a 1994 state
supreme court decision prohibited no-knock warrants). Thirteen (13)
states have laws explicitly authorizing no-knock warrants and in twenty
(20) additional states, no-knock warrants are routinely granted. Kevin
Sack (19 March 2017). “Door-Busting Raids Leave Trail of Blood – The
Heavy Toll of Using SWAT Teams for Search Warrants”. The New York
Times. p. A1. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
Stand Your Ground laws, otherwise known as the Castle Doctrine, is an
exception to a rule in place in some jurisdictions that requires a
defendant to retreat before using deadly force in self-defense. The
castle exception states that if a defendant is in his home, he is not
required to retreat prior to using deadly force in self-defense. Cornell
Law School, Legal Information Institute. Common sense should inform
us that even where police identify themselves, there is no guarantee
the inhabitants of a home will hear that identification. Were the
inhabitants asleep, as in Breona Taylor’s case? Did the inhabitants have
on ear phones listening to music or engaged in video games?
In a country where four in 10 adults have guns in their homes, the raids
create predictable collisions between forces that hurl toward each
other like speeding cars crossing the median into one another —
officers with a license to invade private homes, and residents convinced
of their right to self-defense. Kevin Sack (19 March 2017). “DoorBusting Raids Leave Trail of Blood – The Heavy Toll of Using SWAT
Teams for Search Warrants”. The New York Times. p. A1. Retrieved 21
March 2017.
In the Journal of Gender, Race & Justice [6:2002] Laurence A. Benner
published the scholarly article “Racial Disparity in Narcotics Search
Warrants.” After a study of narcotics search warrants in San Diego
County, he found racial disparities in the issuance of drug search
warrants. African-Americans made up only six (6%) percent of the
population, but were the subjects of search warrants in twenty (20%)
percent of the cases. Hispanics, who made up about twenty-four (24%)
percent of the population, were search warrant subjects in forty-three
(43%) percent of the cases, and whites, who were sixty-one (61%)
percent of the county’s population, were subjects of search warrants in
only thirty-five (35%) percent of the cases. Furthermore, racial
disparities were true in every area of the county, even in predominately
white areas. There is little reason to believe these disparities are
unique to San Diego County.
The needless death of civilians and police officers due to these
competing laws, no-knock warrants and the Castle Doctrine, are
certain, calculable, foreseeable and expected. Worse than that, the
system is set to disproportionately adversely affect Black and Latino
communities. Continuing to operate in the same way, expecting a
different result, will be the very definition of insanity.
By Hycall Brooks, III
Attorney at Law
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