ABSTRACT
"Hot pursuit" is one of the exceptions to the requirement that government agents need a warrant to conduct a search or seizure, pursuant to the Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution. The Fourth Amendment specifies that in order to conduct a search or seizure there must be two elements present: probable cause and a warrant. The US Supreme Court has recognized the hot-pursuit exception, as well as other exceptions, but such exceptions are not limitless. Central to determining whether an exception applies is an examination of the exigency of the situation and the gravity of the circumstances. The Supreme Court rejected the state's contention, stating that before government agents enter a home without a warrant, they must demonstrate exigent circumstances. The Supreme Court has consistently noted that under the Fourth Amendment, searches and seizures within a person's home, absent a warrant, are "presumptively unreasonable.".
