In many TV and movie scenes, police officers can enter homes or apartments with the front door open. In some cases, the homeowner is still inside. And in other cases, a homeowner has fled and left the door open as they escape from the police. In real life, would the police be able to enter your home in any of these situations? Would there be any restrictions on their entry? How about if you left the front door propped open with a bucket? If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably wondered about this subject before – especially after seeing various media portrayals of it. That’s why we’ll answer these questions and more in this post.
Can Police Enter Your Home If The Door Is Open?
Yes, they can, but only in certain circumstances. If your home’s exterior door is open and it is not a hot and humid day (which makes it more likely that mosquitoes might be coming your way), police cannot simply walk into your home. They need another justification to do so.
What Are The Rules For Police Officers Entering A Home With An Open Door Or Window?
- Police must have a lawful right to enter the residence (i.e., they have a warrant to do so)
- Police cannot enter your home if it is in their opinion that doing so could pose a threat to them or other people (for example, if they believe that someone inside the home poses a danger to them).
- Police can only enter your home if they act on an emergency basis (for example, when there is imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury). If this is the case and the police can see no immediate threat, they cannot enter your home.
- If police are in hot pursuit of someone and are forced to take evasive action into your home for safety reasons, then the police may enter your house for safety reasons (but only as long as you do not pose any immediate threat). For example, if you are fleeing from the police at the time and run into your house with the door open, you would be safe from the police until you close the door behind yourself or hide somewhere else inside the house. And even after closing the door behind yourself or hiding somewhere else inside your house, other people may still be able to see you from outside of it so long as you don’t appear to be in immediate danger.
- Police cannot enter a private dwelling without having some sort of warrant to do so unless they believe that there is an immediate danger posed by someone inside (for example, if a child is inside and police believe that the child poses a danger to them).
- Police cannot use a battering ram to enter your home unless they have permission from the occupant of the home (for example, if you are home and an officer knocks on your door, then you can ask them to come in so long as you do not pose any immediate threat to them).
- If the police have been invited into your home (i.e., they have a warrant), then they cannot use any force against you unless it is necessary to protect themselves or others (for example, if someone else is inside of your house and posing a threat to you or others).
- If police are in hot pursuit of someone who has entered your house, then they may enter it for safety reasons as long as you do not pose any immediate danger (i.e., so long as you do not immediately close the door behind yourself or hide somewhere else inside of the house).
- If police are forced to use force against you to protect themselves or others from death or serious bodily harm, this will be considered reasonable under Section 1A of the Criminal Code. The same rule applies when police enter your house for safety reasons (so long as anyone inside your house poses no immediate threat).
- Police may also use reasonable force against you even if they are not in hot pursuit of anyone at the time (i.e., even if you are not somewhere else inside your house when they enter it for safety reasons). This may be the case if you pose an immediate danger or are trying to run away from them at the time.
What Circumstances Would Allow The Police To Enter Your Home Without A Warrant Or Permission?
- If police respond to a call and believe that you are in immediate danger from someone else who has entered your house (i.e. if they believe that the person who has entered your house poses an immediate threat to you).
- If police are responding to a call and believe that someone inside of your house is in immediate danger from you (i.e., if they believe that you pose an immediate threat to them).
- If police are responding to a call and believe that someone inside your house is committing a crime (i.e., if they believe that the person inside of your home is committing a crime at the time).
- If the police have been invited into your home (i.e., they have a warrant).
- If police are in hot pursuit of someone who has entered your house, then they may enter it for safety reasons as long as you do not pose any immediate danger (i.e., so long as you do not immediately close the door behind yourself or hide somewhere else inside of the house).
- If police are forced to use force against you to protect themselves or others from death or serious bodily harm, this will be considered reasonable force under Section 1A of the Criminal Code. The same rule applies when police enter your house for safety reasons (so long as anyone inside your house poses no immediate threat).
How Do You Know If The Police Are Lawfully Allowed To Be In Your Home Or Not?
- If you are inside your house when the police enter it for safety reasons, then you do not have to open the door to them (i.e., you do not have to let them in).
- If you are outside your house when the police enter it for safety reasons, you cannot force them to leave or close the door behind themselves.
- If someone else has invited the police into your home and has a warrant, they can legally enter your home without permission or a search warrant (provided that they do so in observance of the law).
- If the police are in hot pursuit of someone who has entered your house and they believe that this person poses an immediate threat to you or others, then they may enter into it for safety reasons as long as there is no immediate danger posed by anyone inside of your house (i.e., so long as anyone inside of your house poses no immediate threat).
- If you try to hide from the police who are lawfully allowed to be in your home and their presence is known, this will be considered reasonable force under Section 1A of the Criminal Code.
- Police may only use reasonable force against a person if they have committed a crime at any time during that incident (i.e., if they have committed a crime at any time during that episode).
Bottom line:
If you are inside your house when the police enter it for safety reasons and have not committed a crime, you must comply with their commands. If you are outside of your house when the police enter it for safety reasons and anyone inside your house poses no immediate danger, then they cannot force you to close the door behind yourself or hide somewhere else inside the house. If someone else has invited the police into your home and they have a warrant, they can legally enter it without permission or a search warrant (provided that they do so in observance of the law). Suppose police are in hot pursuit of someone who has entered your house and believes that this person poses an immediate threat to you or others. In that case, they may enter into it for safety reasons as long as there is no immediate danger posed by anyone inside of your house (i.e., so long as anyone inside your house poses no immediate threat).
