Title:

Cordell Pearson, et al. v. Afton Callahan

Subject:

Fourth Amendment, Warrant Requirement, Warrantless Entry, Consent, Removal of Consent, Undercover Informants, Qualified Immunity

Questions:

1) Several lower courts have recognized a "consent once removed" exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement. Does this exception authorize police officers to enter a home without a warrant immediately after an undercover informant buys drugs inside (as the Sixth and Seventh Circuits have held), or does the warrantless entry in such circumstances violate the Fourth Amendment (as the Tenth Circuit held below)?

2) Did the Tenth Circuit properly deny qualified immunity when the only decisions directly on point had all upheld similar warrantless entries?

Decisions:

• U.S. Court of Appeals - 10th Circuit Opinion Filed: July 16, 2007
• United States Supreme Court Cert. Granted: March 24, 2008

Resources:

• Docket Sheet From the U.S. Supreme Court.