No-knock SWAT

When police with a warrant show up at a house, they are supposed to “knock-and-announce” themselves before they start blowing things up or busting down doors.  This is a common-law principle implied in the 4th Amendment and made explicit in the US Code (18 U.S.C. § 3109).  But Congress has never passed a law formalizing knock-and-announce rules, and the current practice was gradually jumbled together through amassed legal precedent. 

In cases where the police believe there is a violent threat, or where evidence may be destroyed, they can apply for a “no-knock” warrant, which allows them to roll through an unsuspecting house with flashbangs blazing.  The greatly increased use of no-knock warrants over the last decade has seen a corresponding increase in the shocking home-invasion-style tactics which David French described in a recent piece for National Review.  And the police don’t always manage to leave the scene without actually killing someone:

{mosads}In May 2011, Jose Guerena — a former Marine and an Iraq War veteran — was awakened by the flashbang grenades of a police SWAT team. (A team which was, incidentally, looking for drugs in the wrong place.)  Guerena hid his wife and young son in a closet and grabbed his rifle.  He went to the front door to find out what was going on, and was shot 22 times.  The police then prevented medical workers from entering the house for over an hour, and Guerena died in the meantime.

The police claimed they’d been shot at, but forensics showed Guerena’s rifle was unfired.  A settlement was later reached with Guerena’s widow, but the officers involved were never brought to justice.

No-knock warrants have been upheld as constitutional, but they are a bad idea.  The police are public servants in a dangerous job – they risk their lives to make us safer.  No-knock warrants risk our lives to make the police safer.

Simple legislation could require the police to announce themselves and wait at least 30 seconds after knocking before they use force;  if a homeowner comes to the door, the police should be required to show identification and a warrant and ask – courteously – to be let in.  (In actual emergencies — such as an ongoing hostage situation — no warrant is required, so ending “no-knock” warrants would not affect the police’s ability to respond in a crisis.)

This is a bipartisan issue that worries The Huffington Post as much as The Blaze.  If a policeman had knocked on Guerena’s door and explained he had a warrant to search the premises for drugs, it’s fair to assume Guerena would still be alive.  There is no need for a dozen heavily-loaded SWAT men to barrel into an peaceful household screaming and brandishing guns;  a knock on the door in midday and a courteous explanation that includes the display of a police badge and a search warrant would save anxiety, property, and even the occasional life.

Gelernter is a writer and entrepreneur living in Manhattan.  He is editor of shortbookreviews.com