## Facts

- On July 4, police responded to a report that a man was firing a shotgun from a porch in a residential area.
- As officers approached, they saw a Black man wearing a bandana and a jersey fire a long gun twice into the air and reload.
- After someone said “police,” the man ran through the front door of the house.
- Officers knocked at the door, but no one responded.
- Police forced the door and entered the house.
- Inside, officers immediately stopped Johnson (defendant) and a woman.
- Johnson was shirtless and bareheaded.
- Officers located a jersey on the living room floor.
- Police searched the rest of the house for anyone else who looked like the shooter, but they did not find anyone.
- During that search, police opened a closet about eight to fifteen feet from where Johnson was detained.
- Inside the closet, officers found a loaded shotgun in plain view.
- Police arrested Johnson for misdemeanor offenses associated with firing the gun in public.
- Johnson was later charged federally as a felon in possession of a firearm under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1).
- The district court granted Johnson’s motion to suppress the shotgun, and the United States appealed.

## Issues

1. Did exigent circumstances (including hot pursuit and immediate safety concerns after observed gunfire) justify the officers’ warrantless entry into the home?
2. After detaining Johnson, could officers lawfully open a nearby closet as part of a limited protective sweep for threats or other occupants?
3. If the entry and sweep were lawful, was the shotgun properly seized under the plain-view doctrine, making suppression improper?

## Decision

- The Sixth Circuit reversed the district court’s suppression order and remanded.
- The court concluded the warrantless entry was justified by the emergency presented by the reported and observed “shots fired” event and the suspect’s immediate retreat into the home.
- The court held that, given the fast-moving circumstances and the need to secure the scene, officers could conduct a limited protective sweep for other persons who might pose a danger, including checking a closet located eight to fifteen feet from the detention area.
- Because officers found the loaded shotgun in plain view while lawfully present during the sweep, the seizure was permissible and the shotgun should not have been suppressed.

## Legal Principles

- Warrantless entry into a residence may be reasonable under the Fourth Amendment when officers face exigent circumstances, such as responding to gunfire and pursuing an armed suspect who has just fled into a home.
- A protective sweep may be conducted when officers have a reasonable basis to ensure no other person is present who could pose a danger; the sweep must be limited in scope to places where a person could be hiding.
- Areas close enough to the detention or arrest location to present an immediate threat may be checked when officer safety remains a concern during an unfolding response.
- Under the plain-view doctrine, officers may seize evidence without a warrant if they are lawfully in the viewing area, have lawful access to the item, and its incriminating character is immediately apparent.

## Conclusion

United States v. Johnson involved a government appeal from an order suppressing a shotgun discovered after officers responded to a shots-fired call, observed gunfire, and entered a residence without a warrant when the shooter ran inside and no one answered the door. The Sixth Circuit held the entry and a limited sweep that included opening a nearby closet were justified by the circumstances, and that the loaded shotgun observed in plain view during that lawful activity was admissible, so suppression was reversed and the case was remanded.


United States v. Johnson, 106 Fed. Appx. 363 (2004)