Johnnie Russell sued Officer Colin Powell and other Racine Police Department officers under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging a Fourth Amendment violation. The incident began on June 25, 2020, when police responded to a stabbing complaint at an apartment building. Willie Cannon, the victim, identified Russell as the attacker. Officers arrived and learned that both men lived in the building, but Russell's location was uncertain; he had parked two vehicles, one of which was missing, and the building manager was unsure if Russell had returned to his apartment. Investigators and officers arrived later that afternoon. Before obtaining a search warrant, Officer Powell entered Russell's apartment for 37 seconds to check for injured persons or threats. No one was found. Russell later obtained a warrant for a thorough search but challenged only the initial 37-second warrantless entry. The district court granted summary judgment to the officers, and Russell appealed.
The Seventh Circuit focused on qualified immunity rather than the merits of the constitutional claim, noting that the law was not clearly established that the search was unconstitutional. The court applied the emergency aid exception to the Fourth Amendment, which permits warrantless entry when officers reasonably believe someone inside is injured or in need of immediate aid. The court reasoned that the officers had an objectively reasonable basis to believe Russell might be inside injured or posing a threat. The stabbing was a serious violent crime, the suspect was unaccounted for, and officers received conflicting information about his whereabouts. The court cited precedent, including Michigan v. Fisher and United States v. Schmidt, to establish that officers do not need certainty of injury or a specific threat to enter; they need only an objectively reasonable belief. The court also addressed the argument that the delay of over an hour negated the exigency. Citing Sutterfield v. City of Milwaukee, the court held that the passage of time does not automatically defeat the emergency aid exception, as a wounded person remains in need of aid regardless of the delay. Finally, the court noted the search was limited in scope to 37 seconds, consistent with a welfare check. Because no precedent clearly established that such a search was unreasonable under these specific facts, Officer Powell was entitled to qualified immunity.
The decision affirms the district court's grant of summary judgment, meaning Officer Powell faces no liability for the warrantless search. The ruling reinforces that the emergency aid exception can apply even with significant delays if officers reasonably believe someone is injured, and it clarifies that conflicting information about a suspect's location does not automatically render a welfare check unreasonable. The case is remanded with instructions to enter judgment for the defendants, and no further legal questions regarding the specific facts of this search remain open.
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