Case study (Essay Sample)

Kentucky v King
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Institution:
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Facts
The case is about King and others against the State of Kentucky. Kentucky Police gained access of King’s residence without a search warrant. Upon entry, the Police seized cracked cocaine and marijuana from the premises. King was later charged with three counts which were trafficking marijuana, trafficking controlled substances and persistent criminal offender status.
Legal Issues
While most of the facts were not in issue, King raised the issue of inadmissibility of the evidence based on the facts that the evidence relied on were the fruits of a warrantless search. The State rebutted the argument contending that the evidence should fall under the exclusionary rule as it was obtained under exigent circumstances. The legal question before the court was whether the situation fell under the exigent circumstances envisaged by the Fourth Amendment. Holding and rationale
The Supreme Court held that indeed exigent circumstances did exist justifying the warrantless search and seizure. The Court was of the opinion that the nature of evidence to be collected was easily destructible and waiting for a warrant would afford the defendants a chance to destroy the same.
Case Questions
One: Determining when exigent circumstances exist the justify warrantless searches
Indeed determining when exigent circumstances do exist is difficult. It should be noted that no straight forward formula exists that can be relied upon. The King case can be used illustratively. The three Courts that heard the case had different opinions on the same circumstances with the final court (Supreme Court) holding that indeed exigent circumstances did exist in the case. It should be appreciated that the approach should be on a case by case basis depending on the supervening circumstances.
Two: Exclusion of evidence by a defendant and the Fourth Amendment provision