High court suspends no-knock police raids

Local law enforcement agrees raids are dangerous to the public and police

Posted 7/14/20

By Jerry Bellune

JerryBellune@yahoo.com

The SC Supreme Court has banned surprise no-knock police warrants.

The court told magistrates temporarily to suspend them due to danger to the …

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High court suspends no-knock police raids

Local law enforcement agrees raids are dangerous to the public and police

Posted

By Jerry Bellune
JerryBellune@yahoo.com
The SC Supreme Court has banned surprise no-knock police warrants.
The court told magistrates temporarily to suspend them due to danger to the public and police.

Adam Myrick of the Lexington County Sheriff's Department said ‘no knock’ arrest warrants are rare here.
“"It’s been a number of years – at least a decade or so – since a Lexington County deputy has asked a judge to grant one," Myrick said.
“While there might be rare tactical situations in which they are reasonable, they often present dangers to deputies, bystanders and the fugitive.

"That’s why we’re always careful to announce ourselves when we arrive to take someone into custody. 
"It’s our standard practice to have a marked unit and a uniformed deputy on scene to leave no doubt who we are and that we’re there to conduct law enforcement activities.”

Cameron Mortenson of the Lexington Police agreed.
Mortenson said Police Chief Terrence Green does not favor officers using no knock unless extreme circumstances exist. 
"In that case, there would be careful examination to ensure that this type of warrant was necessary with a focus on the safety of the officers involved in the operation or the citizens."

SC Chief Justice Donald Beatty said circuit and summary judges cannot sign the warrants until they receive further instruction.
“A survey of magistrates revealed that most do not understand the gravity of no-knock warrants and do not discern the heightened requirements for issuing a no-knock warrant,” the order reads.
Law enforcement officers seek “no-knock” warrants from judges allowing them to enter without announcing their presence.

Many police departments across the country have used them in high-flight drug crimes.
The warrants were criticized after a raid on the wrong Louisville, KY., home ended in the death of Breonna Taylor, an innocent woman fatally shot to death.
 

No knock, sc supreme court, Sheriff, Lexington police

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