PA Superior Court: Police May Not Enter House Based on Consent From Person Who Clearly Does Not Live in House
Criminal Defense Lawyer Zak T. Goldstein, Esquire
The Pennsylvania Superior Court has decided the case of Commonwealth v. Lehnerd, holding that actual or apparent authority must be established before an officer may enter a residence. Evidence obtained from a warrantless search and without permission to enter from a person with actual or apparent authority is illegally obtained and must be suppressed. Where police know that the person giving the consent to enter the house does not actually have authority to grant permission, they may not enter the house without a warrant.
Commonwealth v. Lehnerd
Two Pennsylvania State Police troopers found the defendant’s pickup truck overturned on a highway after responding to a dispatch call about a one-vehicle accident. The driver was not present. One of the troopers searched for registration documents in the truck and found empty beer cans. A neighbor informed the troopers that the driver had asked to borrow their phone to call for a ride and the driver smelled of alcohol. The troopers ran the license plates on the vehicle and determined that the defendant was the owner and found their address. The defendant’s parents then arrived at the scene and informed the troopers that the defendant owned the car, and they had driven the defendant home.
After leaving the scene, the troopers drove to the defendant’s home and knocked on the door. No one came to the door. While the troopers were waiting, the defendant’s parents arrived, and the defendant’s mother told the troopers that she believed the defendant was home. The troopers asked if the defendant’s mother could let them in, and she did so. The troopers entered the defendant’s house and escorted him out to perform field sobriety tests. The defendant was arrested for intoxication based on the tests, and he submitted to a blood alcohol breath test at the local State Police barracks, where it was shown that his blood alcohol level was .163%.
The defendant was charged with DUI General Impairment Incapable of Driving Safely, DUI Highest Rate of Alcohol, Abandoning Vehicle on a Highway, and Failure to Activate Hazard Lamps, in addition to three other Vehicle Code offenses. The defendant filed a motion to suppress the evidence obtained from his house due to the troopers’ warrantless entry into his house and the subsequent illegal seizure.
The trial court held an evidentiary hearing and denied the motion to suppress on the grounds that the defendant’s mother had apparent authority to give consent for the troopers to enter the defendant’s house. The defendant was convicted of DUI General Impairment Incapable of Driving Safely, DUI Highest Rate of Alcohol, Abandoning Vehicle on a Highway, and Failure to Activate Hazard Lamps. The defendant filed a post sentence motion seeking a new trial, which was denied. The defendant filed an appeal, continuing to argue that the evidence from his house was illegally obtained.
The Pennsylvania Superior Court’s Decision
The Pennsylvania Superior Court vacated the defendant’s DUI convictions and remanded for a new trial, granting the motion to suppress evidence. The defendant argued that his mother had neither actual nor apparent authority to permit the troopers to enter his home, and the officers violated the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Although a warrant is typically needed for an officer to enter a home, voluntary consent is an exception to this requirement. An occupant with authority over the premises may consent to an officer’s entry and search. The officer must demonstrate reason to believe that an individual has apparent authority to grant permission for entry.
The Superior Court reviewed relevant cases to make its decision. If an individual is not inside the house to let an officer in and they do not tell the officer that they are a current occupant, the officer cannot legally search the house despite the individual informing the officer they can enter. The fact that the person who gave consent in this case was the defendant’s mother did not constitute apparent authority because the defendant was an adult who clearly lived in a separate residence from his mother. The defendant’s mother was not already inside the house and showed no evidence of occupying the house, such as having a key, when she informed the troopers that they could enter the defendant’s house. In fact, one of the troopers testified that they were aware the defendant’s mother did not live there and was not staying there. Due to the defendant’s mother’s lack of apparent or actual authority to grant permission of entry, the Superior Court remanded for a new trial.
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