Appeals Court in Commonwealth v. Gordon Affirms Emergency Aid Exception in the Context of Domestic Violence

May 5, 2015.

In Commonwealthv. Gordon, 87 Mass. App. Ct. 322 (2015), the Appeals Court ruled that the warrantless entry into the defendant’s apartment was justified under the emergency aid exception, as police had an objectively reasonable belief that a recent domestic violence victim might be inside and in need of immediate assistance. The court emphasized that the specific circumstances of domestic violence, including the potential for rapid escalation, must be considered when assessing the necessity for emergency aid.

Our Take:

I don’t believe that the Court strayed far from the well-known contours of the emergency aid doctrine in Gordon.  Rather, the Court’s holding simply reflects an acknowledgment of the special concerns that arise in the context of domestic violence calls.  Domestic violence events are often volatile and create an enhanced potential for catastrophic outcomes.  The Court recognized the weight of the academic evidence which overwhelmingly supports this reality, and acknowledged that police may take these unique dynamics into account when assessing the need for emergency aid. Here, the police had information – which three independent witnesses corroborated on-scene – that a violent domestic assault had just occurred.  The victim was ‘frantic’ and requesting emergency aid.  The circumstances warranted concern that the perpetrator was still present in the apartment with the victim.  The officers’ knock on the door went unanswered.  Given those facts, particularly when viewed through the lens of a comprehensive understanding of domestic violence, a well-being check was warranted in this case. Having said that, cases of this nature will continue to turn on their particular facts.  The Court was quick to caution that domestic violence is not a mantra that can be uttered as a blanket justification for warrantless entries.  Instead, the Court simply acknowledged the self-evident proposition that the dynamic of domestic violence is yet another factor to be considered in the emergency aid analysis.