Payton v. New York

Mr. Justice Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court.

These appeals challenge the constitutionality of New York statutes that authorize police officers to enter a private residence without a warrant and with force, if necessary, to make a routine felony arrest.

The important constitutional question presented by this challenge has been expressly left open in a number of our prior opinions. In United States v. Watson, 423 U. S. 411, we upheld a warrantless “midday public arrest,” expressly noting that the case did not pose “the still unsettled ques [*575] tion . . . 'whether and under what circumstances an officer may enter a suspect’s home to make a warrantless arrest.’ ” Id., at 418, n. 6.[1] The question has been answered in different ways by other appellate courts. The Supreme Court of Florida rejected the constitutional attack,[2] as did the New York Court of Appeals in this case. The courts of last resort in 10 other States, however, have held that unless special circumstances are present, warrantless arrests in the home are unconstitutional.[3] Of the seven United States Courts of Appeals that have considered the question, five have expressed the opinion that such arrests are unconstitutional.[4]