William Robert Taft v. Colorado

Thirty-four years ago, in Maryland v. Buie, 494 U.S. 325 (1990), this Court ruled that the protective sweep exception to the warrant requirement allows only a quick and limited search of the premises incident to an in-home arrest only if the suspect is arrested inside the home, and only if the search is conducted to protect the safety of police officers or others. In this case, the Colorado courts swept away the temporal and proximal limits of the protective sweep exception, applying the exception to an entry and search of the premises when the suspect was not inside the premises and nothing but speculation supported the proposition that someone else might be within the premises. The question presented is: W hether the Colorado Court of Appeals reversibly erred and violated Mr. Taft’s right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures by expanding the protective sweep exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement beyond the limited scope of that exception.