CONSTITUTIONAL LAW--FOURTH AMENDMENT COMMUNITY CARETAKING EXCEPTION ANALYSIS AGAINST THE COMMUNITY--CANIGLIA V. STROM, 953 F.3D 112 (1ST CIR. 2020).

• Author: Tomassini, Bianca

The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures conducted by the State. (1) These unreasonable searches and seizures generally occur when government officials enter homes without warrants; however, this general rule is subject to a few exceptions. (2) As a matter of first impression, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Caniglia v. Strom ("Case-in-Chief'), (3) considered whether Fourth Amendment protections apply where police officers, acting as community caretakers, conduct a warrantless search of a home and seize items from the private premises. (4) The court held that the constitutional protections did not apply because the officers were acting as community caretakers, which justified their warrantless search and seizure. 5

On August 20, 2015, a disagreement arose between Edward Caniglia ("Caniglia") and his wife, Kim ("Kim") which resulted in Caniglia retrieving a handgun from their bedroom, tossing it on the table, and stating to Kim "shoot me now and get it over with." (6) Caniglia subsequently left the residence, while Kim returned the gun to a location in the bedroom and decided that she was going to stay in a hotel for the night if Caniglia returned upset. (7) Caniglia's return ultimately "sparked a second spat[,]" so Kim left for the hotel; later that evening, she spoke to Caniglia on the phone, who still "sounded upset and [a] little angry." (8) The next morning, Kim called Caniglia but she became worried when he did not answer; consequently, she called the police "on a non-emergency line and asked that an officer accompany her to the residence." (9) Kim explained to the officer what happened the night before, and stressed that she was not concerned for her safety, but she was fearful that her husband might have committed suicide. (10) The officer then contacted Caniglia, who said he was willing to speak with the police in person. (11)

Four officers arrived at the residence and spoke with Caniglia, while Kim waited in the car. (12) Three of the four officers on scene thought Caniglia was fine; however, the ranking officer believed that Caniglia seemed "'[a]gitated' and 'angry[.]'" (13) Consequently, the ranking officer determined that Caniglia was "imminently dangerous to himself and others[,]" and requested that an ambulance transport Caniglia for a psychiatric evaluation, to which Caniglia reluctantly agreed. (14) When Caniglia was transported, the officers, accompanied by Kim, entered the home and seized Caniglia's firearms, magazines, and ammunition--despite their awareness of Caniglia's disapproval. (15) Following a psychiatric evaluation, Caniglia was not admitted into the hospital and returned home. (16)

After multiple, unsuccessful attempts to retrieve his firearms from the police department, Caniglia's attorney formally requested their return. (17) The firearms were not returned until four months after the incident. (18) Caniglia subsequently filed a lawsuit with multiple claims in the federal district court against the City of Cranston, the Finance Director of Cranston, the Cranston police chief, and six officers. (19) Both parties filed cross-motions for summary judgement, and the lower court granted the defendants' motion for summary judgment on several counts. (20) Caniglia appealed and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the lower court's ruling. (21) After a de novo review, the First Circuit upheld the police officers' conduct as justified acts under the Fourth Amendment community caretaking doctrine. (22) Caniglia appealed and filed a writ of certiorari, which was granted. (23) The Supreme Court later vacated the First Circuit's holding and held police acting as community caretakers, does not justify warrantless searches and seizures in homes ("Caniglia 2021"). (24)

The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution declares "[t]he right of the people to be secure in their person, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated...." (25) The Amendment prohibits searches and seizures that are conducted without a warrant; however, this requirement is subject to "a few specifically established and well-delineated exceptions." (26) In Cady v. Dombrowski, the Supreme Court of the United States established a new standard called the community caretaking exception, which allows officers acting apart from their investigatory functions, to bypass the warrant requirement when conducting searches and seizures. (27) The Court justified the warrantless search by relying on the fact that the police officers were engaged in conduct that "may be described as community caretaking functions, totally divorced from the detection, investigation, or acquisition of evidence relating to the violation of a criminal statute." (28) Prior to the Cady decision in 2021, the Supreme Court had only mentioned community caretaking in two subsequent cases--both involving automobile searches. (29) In each case, the Court remained silent as to whether the exception applies to homes, causing ambiguity around its scope. (30)

The Supreme Court has distinguished homes from automobiles and consistently held that homes deserve special protection under the Fourth Amendment. (31) Despite this special protection, the government is allowed to enter a home without a warrant in limited circumstances. (32) Police officers acting as community caretakers was one of these special exceptions, and this exception permitted warrantless searches and searches in the home. (33) Searches and seizures of automobiles are also subjected to Fourth Amendment protections, but the characteristics of automobiles have justified its lower constitutional safeguards in comparison to a home. (34) Therefore, the community caretaking exception established in Cady caused confusion amongst the circuit courts due to the uncertainty as to whether the community caretaking exception applies beyond automobiles. (35) Prior to Caniglia 2021, some circuits strictly followed the Supreme Court's application and only applied the community caretaking exception to vehicles. (36) Other circuits took a relaxed approach and extended the exception to justify warrantless searches and seizures in homes. (37)

The community caretaking exception created in Cady is still used as a valid exemption from the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment; however, it is important to note that the Supreme Court recently narrowed the exception's scope and stressed that the exception applies only to warrantless searches and seizures of homes. (38) Although no framework has been implemented to guide the application of this exception, the circuits have relied on the traditional Fourth Amendment reasonableness standard. (39) Prior to Caniglia 2021, circuit courts considered principles established in precedent and looked to all of the facts when analyzing whether the community caretaking exception applies beyond the context of automobiles. (40)

The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, as an issue of first impression, expanded the community caretaking exception to apply to warrantless searches and seizures from homes in the Case-in-Chief. (41) The court first looked to the exception's history outlined in Cady, and subsequently considered precedent cases within the circuit that applied the community caretaking doctrine. (42) Although the Cady Court did not consider whether the exception applies to searches and seizures of homes, the court in the Case-in-Chief acknowledged that the First Circuit has previously extended the scope of the exception beyond vehicle searches and impoundment. (43) After acknowledging different scopes of the doctrine, the First Circuit announced that it joined its sister circuits in allowing the community caretaking exception to apply outside of the automobile context. (44) The court's decision to broaden the scope of the doctrine was supported by "the doctrine's core purpose, its gradual expansion since Cady, and the practical realities of policing." (45) After the court expanded the scope of the exception, it then assessed whether the community caretaking doctrine encompassed the police activity in question. (46)

The court concluded that the community caretaking exception permitted the police to conduct warrantless searches and seizures without violating the Fourth Amendment. (47) Specifically, the court characterized the actions of the police as "a natural fit for the community caretaking exception[,]" and further explained that the exception may lessen police second-guessing in situations where police reasonably believe that they are dealing with a mentally ill person. (48) In its reasoning, the court also considered the Fourth Amendment reasonableness standard and balanced "the need for the caretaking activity and the affected individual's interest in freedom from government intrusions." (49) Although the court concluded that the police's conduct fell within the community caretaking exception, the court acknowledged that the exception is not a "free pass" to bypass the warrant requirement, and outlined some limitations. (50) Ultimately, police may invoke the community caretaking exception so long as they engage in caretaking activities that are "justified on objective grounds," drawn from "state law or from sound procedure[,]" and considered to be "within the realm of reason." (51) Therefore, because the police officers were acting as community caretakers and following "sound police procedures" that were viewed as reasonable among the available options, the court held that the...