I Hear You Knocking

The recent case in Atlanta whereby an elderly woman was killed during a police execution of a search warrant will have many interesting twists and turns before its final disposition. This case has the community and police department at odds over how the incident transpired. In defense of the Atlanta Police Department, they have called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for an outside review of the incident. Furthermore, they have suspended the activities of the narcotics unit that was involved in the shooting until the investigation is completed. This response is exactly what was needed and hopefully cooler heads will prevail during this investigative process.

Aside from the obvious concerns of the woman whose life was lost, as well as the police officers who were injured, this case had spotlighted another practice that will wind up under the microscope. The practice of no-knock previsions in search warrants has been a tremendous aid in the execution of warrants of drug related cases. The no-knock provision was utilized in the Atlanta case as well. No-knock provisions give the police officers the ability to enter the location to be searched without prior announcement or warning if there is potential for the evidence to be destroyed under normal search warrant entry procedures. In drug cases, a quick flush of the toilet can destroy the potential for drug cases to ever make it to court. No-knock provisions, allow the police officers the advantage of a quick entry in hopes that they might come in before the suspects can destroy the evidence.

With the exception of Wisconsin, most states utilize the no-knock provision. A Wisconsin Judge entered a ruling banning the practice of no-knock provisions as unconstitutional. However, the fact that most states have the provision does not mean that attaching the provision to a normal search warrant comes easy. Police officers must convince a Magistrate judge, who issues the search warrants, that the no-knock provision is needed on a case-by-case basis. The police have to supply testimony as to why a normal knock and answer procedure would be detrimental to the recovery of the evidence in the case and or the safety of the occupants of the dwelling or the police officers who will be making the entry. The judge has the discretion on each case to deny or approve the request for the additional provision.


The Atlanta case is an example of how any search warrant can go bad. In this case, the investigation will reveal who and what it was that made the search warrant attempt become deadly. But in cases as a whole, the no-knock provision is a much needed tool for law enforcement officers. It may be revealed that the Atlanta case was a case where the wrong house was identified as a drug location. Time will tell. But, in the cases where investigative technique have been properly performed, and there is documented evidence that illegal drug suspects and drug contraband are in the dwelling, it is not reasonable to think that the officers can walk up to the door, like the Avon lady, and announce their intentions.

It is a sad, but real, fact that many people who are in the business of selling and buying drugs are also in the business of possessing some fairly dangerous weapons. It is also a sad fact that police officers are killed each year enforcing laws that deal with drug related violations. It is important that we do not allow one case, which had devastating results, to be the premise of how all drug investigations will be conducted.

If the investigation reveals that the police acted improperly on the case, they should and will be held accountable. At the same time, if they acted within the boundaries of policy and procedure, and more importantly, within the boundaries of the law, they should be vindicated. To make a knee jerk reaction concerning a blanket policy, based on one incident, would be a slap in the face to the police officers who have executed thousands of cases that have gone by the book without incident. In the mean time, the drug dealers are having a very healthy belly laugh at the expense of us all.