 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
People v. Hart9/16/1980
Accordingly, we view the Abney decision not as a statement of new law, but an exposition of what the law is. Without specifically defining "exigent circumstances," the Abney opinion set forth an evaluation of the facts in that case which the court considered to be indicative of such circumstances and of the reasonableness of the police action. The court considered that the following factors were worthy of specific mention in connection with the presence of exigent circumstances:
(1) The recentness of the offense and the need for prompt action (i.e., within the spirit of the "hot pursuit" doctrine);
(2) The fact there is no deliberate or unjustified delay by the officers during which time a warrant could have been obtained, and
(3) The fact the suspect is armed and exhibited some sign of a violent character.
The court went on to set forth these other factors which suggested that the police acted reasonably:
(1) The existence of a clear showing of probable cause based on reasonably trustworthy information;
(2) The clear identification of the suspect;
(3) The belief that the suspect is in the premises entered, and
(4) The fact the entry made is peaceful.
• 3 We believe all three of the factors mentioned in connection with exigent circumstances were present in the case at bar. The offense occurred less than an hour before the police arrived at the defendant's home. There was no deliberate or unjustified delay by the officers in seeking a warrant because between the time of the offense and the officers' arrival at the defendant's home, bits and pieces of information were being gathered and added together until the warmth of the TransAm's hood became the apex of the pyramided facts, all of which stacked up to form the requisite probable cause to arrest the defendant. Due to the nature of the crime, the officers had reason to believe the defendant was armed and violent. Under the exigencies of the situation, we conclude the officers were justified in proceeding to effect the warrantless arrest. We also point out specifically that the police acted reasonably. The arrest, although made at night, was made peacefully and, by our reading of the record, the entry and searches incidental to the arrest were made consensually.
• 4 The second aspect of the search issue raised by the defendant — that there was no probable cause to permit a warrantless entry — is without merit. The record disclosed that Officer Snyder knew that the car described by the eyewitnesses was the same or similar to the one owned by Ed Hart's recently deceased son and he conveyed this information to Captain Leggett. Officer White was later informed by a private citizen named Mark Schultz as to that same fact. Captain Leggett was also aware of the defendant's son's death which had occurred only several weeks prior to the incident and involved the Perkinses. The information received from the unidentified person at the scene that the defendant blamed the Perkinses for his son's death added little to the conclusion which likely had already been drawn by the police as the result of their collective knowledge. Based on that knowledge, the police could reasonably have assumed that the defendant held a grudge against the Perkinses and upon proceeding to the defendant's home and finding the TransAm with a warm engine, they had probable cause to arrest the defendant. It has been established in determining the presence of probable cause that the knowledge of one officer is the knowledge of all (People v. Donnenfeld (1978), 62 Ill. App.3d 991; People v. Walker (1977), 45 Ill. App.3d 627), and tha
Page 1 2 3 4 5 Illinois DUI Attorneys
DUI Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|