4th Amendment Violation Unlawful Seizure.

Byline: Derek Hawkins

7th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Sally Gaetjens v. City of Loves Park, et al.,

Case No.: 20-1295

Officials: KANNE, SCUDDER, and KIRSCH, Circuit Judges.

Focus: 4th Amendment Violation Unlawful Seizure

PlaintiffSally Gaetjens sued various local government officials for entering and condemning her home and confiscating her thirty-seven cats, all without a warrant. She's right that the Fourth Amendment would usually prohibit such conduct. But emergencies breed exceptionsand this case is littered with emergencies.

Namely, Gaetjens went missing in action, and Defendants had reason to believe that she was experiencing a medical emergency. Plus, when Defendants attempted to check her home, they deemed it so noxious that it posed a public-safety...