OPINION:
A man’s home is his castle, except in Montville Township, N.J., where city officials want to give police the authority to crash any party. If there are balloons tied to the mailbox or the sounds of a crowd having a noisy time, under a proposed ordinance the local police force could claim “reasonable suspicion” that teens may be drinking and search the private residence. The scheme illustrates how the founding principles have eroded.
The Fourth Amendment guarantees the right to be secure in one’s home against unreasonable searches, unless a judge issues a warrant “upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” There is no exception allowing intrusions for police on the hunt for a six-pack of Budweiser. Even noisy and inconsiderate students, working on a Ph.D in drunkology, are entitled to constitutional rights.
Nevertheless, Montville is advancing an ordinance making it a crime for, as an example, a 20-year-old to hold a beer in his hands at a friend’s house while watching a football game. He doesn’t actually need to drink it. A telephone call from a neighbor would give officers the authority they need to break down the door to search the premises.
“It’s not supposed to work that way,” concedes one of the townsmen backing the proposal. “… but it could happen.”
In addition to a $350 fine, the city could suspend for six months the driver’s license of anyone cited under the ordinance, even though the violation is nothing about driving. Fred Semrau, the town’s lawyer, says dozens of New Jersey communities have similar laws on the books, and there are no problems. “The police department cannot just have forcible entry,” wrote Mr. Semrau. “… There must be probable cause and exigent circumstances for the police to enter a premises after receiving a call of underage drinking. For example, someone is ill or in danger; i.e., on the roof.”
Celebrities who have been subjected to searches of their homes through a fad known as “swatting” know that police departments aren’t necessarily neat and proper in investigating telephoned tips. Two years ago, a SWAT team, complete with helicopters, raided the Los Angeles home of pop singer Justin Bieber after a 12-year-old made an anonymous telephone call to 911 claiming there was a “gun” at Mr. Bieber’s address. There was no gun, but cops snooped through the singer’s belongings anyway.
A-listers, such as Tom Cruise and Clint Eastwood, have been victims, but the threat extends beyond celebrities. Alexander Wachs was streaming video live over the Internet from his Plainfield, Ill., home when the SWAT team knocked down his door, based on a prank telephone call. Mr. Wachs was arrested for marijuana possession after police found some. Charges were later dropped.
Government busybodies are quick to jettison the fundamental principle that a man’s home is his castle. Underage drinking can be a serious problem in many communities, as anyone who lives near a college campus can learn to his sorrow. Cultivating neighborly manners is often a lost art. But if police have probable cause that illegal activity is taking place, they can find a judge to issue a warrant. It may be a burden, but it’s a burden the government must meet.
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