§ 5.6.4 Hot Pursuit
If police are pursuing a suspect whom they have probable cause to arrest and the suspect runs into a home, the officers may enter the home if they are in the midst of the chase (i.e., “hot pursuit”). See State v. Ault, 150 Ariz., 459, 463, 724 P.2d 545 (1986) (no hot pursuit justification found); State v. White, 160 Ariz. 24, 32, 770 P.2d 328, 336 (1989) (hot pursuit entry justified, distinguishing Ault; “where the officers know that a suspect is fleeing or attempting to flee, a warrantless entry into a home is justified as an exigent circumstance if it is reasonably necessary to prevent the suspect’s escape and if the state did not itself create the exigent circumstance”). See below section for misdemeanor suspects. See also A.R.S. § 13-3891 (providing that officers are not authorized to enter homes to chase a fleeing misdemeanor suspect).
1. Misdemeanor Suspects. Officers may not enter the home of a misdemeanor suspect based only on the person’s act of retreating into the home. Courts must “assess[] case by case the exigencies arising from misdemeanants’ flight.” Lange v. California, 141 S. Ct. 2011, 2021-22 (2021) (“The Fourth Amendment ordinarily requires that police officers get a warrant before entering a home without permission. But an...
