Tatman v. State

HERRMANN, Chief Justice:

The defendant appeals his conviction for possession of hypodermic needles and syringes [16 Del.C. § 4716(c) and (d)]. He asserts that the police violated the “knock- and-announce” rule, Dyton v. State, Del.Supr., 250 A.2d 383 (1969), thus rendering illegal their search and seizure of the drug paraphernalia involved.

At 6:00 a. m., acting under a warrant to search Patricia Browning’s apartment, police officers knocked on the street door of the multi-family building which housed her apartment; they waited about five seconds, then broke the door down with sledge hammers.…