State v. Hughes

¶ 1. This case involves a warrantless police entry into a home. The officers in question were at the threshold of the defendant's apartment about to investigate a complaint of trespassing when the door was unexpectedly opened, and they immediately detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside. The officers also deduced a distinct possibility that any evidence of the drug would be destroyed if they did not immediately enter, since the people in the apartment were now alerted to their presence. The question in the case is, under these circumstances, does the combination of the strong…