Fernandez v. California

(Slip Opinion) OCTOBER TERM, 2013 1

Syllabus

NOTE: Where it is feasible, a syllabus (headnote) will be released, as is

being done in connection with this case, at the time the opinion is issued.

The syllabus constitutes no part of the opinion of the Court but has been

prepared by the Reporter of Decisions for the convenience of the reader.

See United States v. Detroit Timber & Lumber Co., 200 U. S. 321, 337.

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

Syllabus

FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEAL OF CALIFORNIA,

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

No. 12–7822. Argued November 13, 2013—Decided February 25, 2014

Police officers observed a suspect in a violent robbery run into an

apartment building, and heard screams coming from one of the

apartments. They knocked on the apartment door, which was an-

swered by Roxanne Rojas, who appeared to be battered and bleeding.

When the officers asked her to step out of the apartment so that they

could conduct a protective sweep, petitioner came to the door and ob-

jected. Suspecting that he had assaulted Rojas, the officers removed

petitioner from the apartment and placed him under arrest. He was

then identified as the perpetrator in the earlier robbery and taken to

the police station. An officer later returned to the apartment and, af-

ter obtaining Rojas’ oral and written consent, searched the premises,

where he found several items linking petitioner to the robbery. The

trial court denied petitioner’s motion to suppress that evidence, and

he was convicted. The California Court of Appeal affirmed. It held

that because petitioner was not present when Rojas consented to the

search, the exception to permissible warrantless consent searches of

jointly occupied premises that arises when one of the occupants pre-

sent objects to the search, Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U. S. 103, did not

apply, and therefore, petitioner’s suppression motion had been

properly denied.

Held: Randolph does not extend to this situation, where Rojas’ consent

was provided well after petitioner had been removed from their

apartment. Pp. 5–15.

(a) Consent searches are permissible warrantless searches,

Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U. S. 218, 228, 231–232, and are

clearly reasonable when the consent comes from the sole occupant of

the premises. When multiple occupants are involved, the rule ex-

tends to the search of the premises or effects of an absent, noncon-

2 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Syllabus

senting occupant so long as “the consent of one who possesses com-

mon authority over [the] premises or effects” is obtained. United

States v. Matlock, 415 U. S. 164, 170. However, when “a physically

present inhabitan[t]” refuses to consent, that refusal “is dispositive as

to him, regardless of the consent of a fellow occupant.” Randolph,

547 U. S., at 122–123. A controlling factor in Randolph was the ob-

jecting occupant’s physical presence. See, e.g., id., at 106, 108, 109,

114. Pp. 5–9.

(b) Petitioner contends that, though he was not present when Rojas

consented, Randolph nevertheless controls, but neither of his argu-

ments is sound. Pp. 9–14.

(1) He first argues that his absence should not matter since it oc-

curred only because the police had taken him away. Dictum in Ran-

dolph suggesting that consent by one occupant might not be sufficient

if “there is evidence that the police have removed the potentially ob-

jecting tenant from the entrance for the sake of avoiding a possible

objection,” 547 U. S., at 121, is best understood to refer to situations

in which the removal of the potential objector is not objectively rea-

sonable. Petitioner does not contest the fact that the police had rea-

sonable grounds for his removal or the existence of probable cause for

his arrest. He was thus in the same position as an occupant absent

for any other reason. Pp. 9–10.

(2) Petitioner also argues that the objection he made while at the

threshold remained effective until he changed his mind and withdrew

it. This is inconsistent with Randolph in at least two important

ways. It cannot be squared with the “widely shared social expecta-

tions” or “customary social usage” upon which Randolph’s holding

was based. 547 U. S., at 111, 121. It also creates the sort of practical

complications that Randolph sought to avoid by adopting a “formal-

is[tic]” rule, id., at 121, e.g., requiring that the scope of an objection’s

duration and the procedures necessary to register a continuing objec-

tion be defined. Pp. 10–14.

(c) Petitioner claims that his expansive interpretation of Randolph

would not hamper law enforcement because in most cases where of-

ficers have probable cause to arrest a physically present objector they

also have probable cause to obtain a warrant to search the premises

that the objector does not want them to enter. But he misunder-

stands the constitutional status of consent searches, which are per-

missible irrespective of the availability of a warrant. Requiring offic-

ers to obtain a warrant when a warrantless search is justified may

interfere with law enforcement strategies and impose an unmerited

burden on the person willing to consent to an immediate search.

Pp. 14–15.

208 Cal. App. 4th 100, 145 Cal. Rptr. 3d 51, affirmed.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 3

Syllabus

ALITO, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J.,

and SCALIA, KENNEDY, THOMAS, and BREYER, JJ., joined. SCALIA, J., and

THOMAS, J., filed concurring opinions. GINSBURG, J., filed a dissenting

opinion, in which SOTOMAYOR and KAGAN, JJ., joined.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 1

Opinion of the Court

NOTICE: This opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the

preliminary print of the United States Reports. Readers are requested to

notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Court of the United States, Wash-

ington, D. C. 20543, of any typographical or other formal errors, in order

that corrections may be made before the preliminary print goes to press.

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

_________________

No. 12–7822

_________________

WALTER FERNANDEZ, PETITIONER v. CALIFORNIA

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEAL OF

CALIFORNIA FOR THE SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

[February 25, 2014]

JUSTICE ALITO delivered the opinion of the Court.

Our cases firmly establish that police officers may

search jointly occupied premises if one of the occupants1

consents. See United States v. Matlock, 415 U. S. 164

(1974). In Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U. S. 103 (2006), we

recognized a narrow exception to this rule, holding that

the consent of one occupant is insufficient when another

occupant is present and objects to the search. In this case,

we consider whether Randolph applies if the objecting

occupant is absent when another occupant consents. Our

opinion in Randolph took great pains to emphasize that its

holding was limited to situations in which the objecting

occupant is physically present. We therefore refuse to

extend Randolph to the very different situation in this

case, where consent was provided by an abused woman

well after her male partner had been removed from the

apartment they shared.

——————

1 We use the terms “occupant,” “resident,” and “tenant” interchangea-

bly to refer to persons having “common authority” over premises within

the meaning of Matlock. See United States v. Matlock, 415 U. S. 164,

171, n. 7 (1974).

2 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

I

A

The events involved in this case occurred in Los Angeles

in October 2009. After observing Abel Lopez cash a check,

petitioner Walter Fernandez approached Lopez and asked

about the neighborhood in which he lived. When Lopez

responded that he was from Mexico, Fernandez laughed

and told Lopez that he was in territory ruled by the

“D.F.S.,” i.e., the “Drifters” gang. App. 4–5. Petitioner

then pulled out a knife and pointed it at Lopez’ chest.

Lopez raised his hand in self-defense, and petitioner cut

him on the wrist.

Lopez ran from the scene and called 911 for help, but

petitioner whistled, and four men emerged from a nearby

apartment building and attacked Lopez. After knocking

him to the ground, they hit and kicked him and took his

cell phone and his wallet, which contained $400 in cash.

A police dispatch reported the incident and mentioned

the possibility of gang involvement, and two Los Angeles

police officers, Detective Clark and Officer Cirrito, drove

to an alley frequented by members of the Drifters. A man

who appeared scared walked by the officers and said:

“ ‘[T]he guy is in the apartment.’ ” Id., at 5. The officers

then observed a man run through the alley and into the

building to which the man was pointing. A minute or two

later, the officers heard sounds of screaming and fighting

coming from that building.

After backup arrived, the officers knocked on the door of

the apartment unit from which the screams had been

heard. Roxanne Rojas answered the door. She was hold-

ing a baby and appeared to be crying. Her face was red,

and she had a large bump on her nose. The officers also

saw blood on her shirt and hand from what appeared to be

a fresh injury. Rojas told the police that she had been in a

fight. Officer Cirrito asked if anyone else was in the

apartment, and Rojas said that her 4-year-old son was the

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 3

Opinion of the Court

only other person present.

After Officer Cirrito asked Rojas to step out of the

apartment so that he could conduct a protective sweep,

petitioner appeared at the door wearing only boxer shorts.

Apparently agitated, petitioner stepped forward and said,

“ ‘You don’t have any right to come in here. I know my

rights.’ ” Id., at 6. Suspecting that petitioner had assaulted

Rojas, the officers removed him from the apartment

and then placed him under arrest. Lopez identified peti-

tioner as his initial attacker, and petitioner was taken to

the police station for booking.

Approximately one hour after petitioner’s arrest, Detec-

tive Clark returned to the apartment and informed Rojas

that petitioner had been arrested. Detective Clark re-

quested and received both oral and written consent from

Rojas to search the premises.2 In the apartment, the

police found Drifters gang paraphernalia, a butterfly

knife, clothing worn by the robbery suspect, and ammuni-

tion. Rojas’ young son also showed the officers where

petitioner had hidden a sawed-off shotgun.

B

Petitioner was charged with robbery, Cal. Penal Code

Ann. §211 (West 2008), infliction of corporal injury on a

——————

2 Both petitioner and the dissent suggest that Rojas’ consent was

coerced. Post, at 9, n. 5 (opinion of GINSBURG, J.). But the trial court

found otherwise, App. 152, and the correctness of that finding is not

before us. In suggesting that Rojas’ consent was coerced, the dissent

recites portions of Rojas’ testimony from the suppression hearing that

the trial judge appears to have rejected. Ibid. Similarly, the jury

plainly did not find Rojas to be credible. At trial, she testified for the

defense and told the jury, among other things, that the wounds ob-

served by the officers who came to her door were not inflicted by peti-

tioner but by a woman looking for petitioner during a fight. 208 Cal.

App. 4th 100, 109–110, 145 Cal. Rptr. 3d 51, 56 (2012). The jury

obviously did not believe this testimony because it found petitioner

guilty of inflicting corporal injury on her.

4 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

spouse, cohabitant, or child’s parent, §273.5(a), possession

of a firearm by a felon, §12021(a)(1)(West 2009), posses-

sion of a short-barreled shotgun, §12020(a)(1), and felony

possession of ammunition, §12316(b)(1).

Before trial, petitioner moved to suppress the evidence

found in the apartment, but after a hearing, the court

denied the motion. Petitioner then pleaded nolo conten-

dere to the firearms and ammunition charges. On the re-

maining counts—for robbery and infliction of corporal

injury—he went to trial and was found guilty by a jury.

The court sentenced him to 14 years of imprisonment.

The California Court of Appeal affirmed. 208 Cal. App.

4th 100, 145 Cal. Rptr. 3d 51 (2012). Because Randolph

did not overturn our prior decisions recognizing that an

occupant may give effective consent to search a shared

residence, the court agreed with the majority of the federal

circuits that an objecting occupant’s physical presence is

“indispensible to the decision in Randolph.” Id., at 122,

145 Cal. Rptr. 3d, at 66.3 And because petitioner was not

——————

3 See United States v. Cooke, 674 F. 3d 491, 498 (CA5 2012) (“Ran-

dolph was a narrow exception to the general Matlock rule permitting

cotenant consent, relevant only as to physically present objectors”);

United States v. Hudspeth, 518 F. 3d 954, 960 (CA8 2008) (concluding

that “the narrow holding of Randolph, which repeatedly referenced the

defendant’s physical presence and immediate objection is inapplica-

ble”); United States v. Henderson, 536 F. 3d 776, 777 (CA7 2008)

(recognizing that “Randolph left the bulk of third-party consent law in

place; its holding applies only when the defendant is both present and

objects to the search of his home”); United States v. McKerrell, 491

F. 3d 1221, 1227 (CA10 2007) (“Randolph carefully delineated the

narrow circumstances in which its holding applied, and . . . Randolph

consciously employed a rule requiring an express objection by a present

co-tenant”); but see United States v. Murphy, 516 F. 3d 1117, 1124–

1125 (CA9 2008) (holding that “when a co-tenant objects to a search

and another party with common authority subsequently gives consent

to that search in the absence of the first co-tenant the search is invalid

as to the objecting co-tenant” because “[o]nce a co-tenant has registered

his objection, his refusal to grant consent remains effective barring

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 5

Opinion of the Court

present when Rojas consented, the court held that peti-

tioner’s suppression motion had been properly denied. Id.,

at 121, 145 Cal. Rptr. 3d, at 65.

The California Supreme Court denied the petition for

review, and we granted certiorari. 569 U. S. ___ (2013).

II

A

The Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable searches

and seizures and provides that a warrant may not be

issued without probable cause, but “the text of the Fourth

Amendment does not specify when a search warrant must

be obtained.” Kentucky v. King, 563 U. S. ___, ___ (2011)

(slip op., at 5). Our cases establish that a warrant is

generally required for a search of a home, Brigham City v.

Stuart, 547 U. S. 398, 403 (2006), but “the ultimate touch-

stone of the Fourth Amendment is ‘reasonableness,’ ” ibid.;

see also Michigan v. Fisher, 558 U. S. 45, 47 (2009) ( per

curiam). And certain categories of permissible warrant-

less searches have long been recognized.

Consent searches occupy one of these categories. “Con-

sent searches are part of the standard investigatory

techniques of law enforcement agencies” and are “a con-

stitutionally permissible and wholly legitimate aspect of

effective police activity.” Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412

U. S. 218, 228, 231–232 (1973). It would be unreasonable—

indeed, absurd—to require police officers to obtain a war-

rant when the sole owner or occupant of a house or apart-

ment voluntarily consents to a search. The owner of a

home has a right to allow others to enter and examine the

premises, and there is no reason why the owner should not

be permitted to extend this same privilege to police officers

if that is the owner’s choice. Where the owner believes

——————

some objective manifestation that he has changed his position and no

longer objects”).

6 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

that he or she is under suspicion, the owner may want the

police to search the premises so that their suspicions are

dispelled. This may be particularly important where the

owner has a strong interest in the apprehension of the

perpetrator of a crime and believes that the suspicions of

the police are deflecting the course of their investigation.

An owner may want the police to search even where they

lack probable cause, and if a warrant were always re-

quired, this could not be done. And even where the police

could establish probable cause, requiring a warrant de-

spite the owner’s consent would needlessly inconvenience

everyone involved—not only the officers and the magis-

trate but also the occupant of the premises, who would

generally either be compelled or would feel a need to stay

until the search was completed. Michigan v. Summers,

452 U. S. 692, 701 (1981).4

While it is clear that a warrantless search is reasonable

when the sole occupant of a house or apartment consents,

what happens when there are two or more occupants?

Must they all consent? Must they all be asked? Is consent

by one occupant enough? The Court faced that problem 40

years ago in United States v. Matlock, 415 U. S. 164

(1974).

In that case, Matlock and a woman named Graff were

living together in a house that was also occupied by several

of Graff ’s siblings and by her mother, who had rented

the house. While in the front yard of the house, Matlock

was arrested for bank robbery and was placed in a squad

car. Although the police could have easily asked him for

——————

4 A main theme of the dissent is that the police in this case had prob-

able cause to search the apartment and therefore could have obtained a

warrant. Of course, this will not always be so in cases in which one

occupant consents to a search and the other objects, and the dissent

does not suggest that a warrant should be required only when probable

cause is present. As a result, the dissent’s repeated references to the

availability of a warrant in this case are beside the point.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 7

Opinion of the Court

consent to search the room that he and Graff shared, they

did not do so. Instead, they knocked on the door and

obtained Graff ’s permission to search. The search yielded

incriminating evidence, which the defendant sought to

suppress, but this Court held that Graff ’s consent justified

the warrantless search. As the Court put it, “the consent

of one who possesses common authority over premises or

effects is valid as against the absent, nonconsenting per-

son with whom that authority is shared.” Id., at 170.

In Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U. S. 177 (1990), the Court

reaffirmed and extended the Matlock holding. In Rodri-

guez, a woman named Fischer told police officers that she

had been assaulted by Rodriguez in what she termed “ ‘our’

apartment.” 497 U. S., at 179. She also informed the

officers that Rodriguez was asleep in the apartment, and

she then accompanied the officers to that unit. When they

arrived, the officers could have knocked on the door and

awakened Rodriguez, and had they done so, Rodriguez

might well have surrendered at the door and objected to

the officers’ entry. Instead, Fischer unlocked the door, the

officers entered without a warrant, and they saw drug

paraphernalia and containers filled with white powder in

plain view.

After the search, the police learned that Fischer no

longer resided at the apartment, and this Court held that

she did not have common authority over the premises at

the time in question. The Court nevertheless held that

the warrantless entry was lawful because the police rea-

sonably believed that Fischer was a resident. Id., at 188–

189.

B

While consent by one resident of jointly occupied prem-

ises is generally sufficient to justify a warrantless search,

we recognized a narrow exception to this rule in Georgia v.

Randolph, 547 U. S. 103 (2006). In that case, police offi-

8 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

cers responded to the Randolphs’ home after receiving a

report of a domestic dispute. When the officers arrived,

Janet Randolph informed the officers that her estranged

husband, Scott Randolph, was a cocaine user and that

there were “items of drug evidence” in the house. Id., at

107 (internal quotation marks omitted). The officers first

asked Scott for consent to search, but he “unequivocally

refused.” Ibid. The officers then turned to Janet, and she

consented to the search, which produced evidence that was

later used to convict Scott for possession of cocaine.

Without questioning the prior holdings in Matlock and

Rodriguez, this Court held that Janet Randolph’s consent

was insufficient under the circumstances to justify the

warrantless search. The Court reiterated the proposition

that a person who shares a residence with others assumes

the risk that “any one of them may admit visitors, with

the consequence that a guest obnoxious to one may never-

theless be admitted in his absence by another.” 547 U. S.,

at 111. But the Court held that “a physically present

inhabitant’s express refusal of consent to a police search

[of his home] is dispositive as to him, regardless of the

consent of a fellow occupant.” Id., at 122–123 (emphasis

added).

The Court’s opinion went to great lengths to make clear

that its holding was limited to situations in which the

objecting occupant is present. Again and again, the opin-

ion of the Court stressed this controlling factor. See id., at

106 (“present at the scene”); ibid. (“physically present”);

id., at 108 (“a co-tenant who is present”); id., at 109

(“physically present”); id., at 114 (“a present and objecting

co-tenant”); id., at 119 (a co-tenant “standing at the door

and expressly refusing consent”); id., at 120 (“a physically

present resident”), id., at 121 (“a physically present fellow

tenant objects”); ibid. (“[A] potential defendant with self-

interest in objecting is at the door and objects”); id., at 122

(“[A] physically present inhabitant’s express refusal of

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 9

Opinion of the Court

consent to a police search is dispositive as to him”). The

Court’s opinion could hardly have been clearer on this

point, and the separate opinion filed by JUSTICE BREYER,

whose vote was decisive, was equally unambiguous. See

id., at 126 (concurring) (“The Court’s opinion does not

apply where the objector is not present ‘and object[ing]’ ”).

III

In this case, petitioner was not present when Rojas

consented, but petitioner still contends that Randolph is

controlling. He advances two main arguments. First, he

claims that his absence should not matter since he was

absent only because the police had taken him away.

Second, he maintains that it was sufficient that he objected

to the search while he was still present. Such an objec-

tion, he says, should remain in effect until the objecting

party “no longer wishes to keep the police out of his home.”

Brief for Petitioner 8. Neither of these arguments is

sound.

A

We first consider the argument that the presence of the

objecting occupant is not necessary when the police are

responsible for his absence. In Randolph, the Court sug-

gested in dictum that consent by one occupant might not

be sufficient if “there is evidence that the police have

removed the potentially objecting tenant from the en-

trance for the sake of avoiding a possible objection.” 547

U. S., at 121. We do not believe the statement should be

read to suggest that improper motive may invalidate

objectively justified removal. Hence, it does not govern

here.

The Randolph dictum is best understood not to require

an inquiry into the subjective intent of officers who detain

or arrest a potential objector but instead to refer to situa-

tions in which the removal of the potential objector is not

10 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

objectively reasonable. As petitioner acknowledges, see

Brief for Petitioner 25, our Fourth Amendment cases

“have repeatedly rejected” a subjective approach.

Brigham City, 547 U. S., at 404 (alteration and internal

quotation marks omitted). “Indeed, we have never held,

outside limited contexts such as an ‘inventory search or

administrative inspection . . . , that an officer’s motive

invalidates objectively justifiable behavior under the

Fourth Amendment.’ ” King, 563 U. S., at ___ (slip op.,

at 10).

Petitioner does not claim that the Randolph Court

meant to break from this consistent practice, and we do

not think that it did. And once it is recognized that the

test is one of objective reasonableness, petitioner’s argu-

ment collapses. He does not contest the fact that the

police had reasonable grounds for removing him from the

apartment so that they could speak with Rojas, an appar-

ent victim of domestic violence, outside of petitioner’s

potentially intimidating presence. In fact, he does not

even contest the existence of probable cause to place him

under arrest. We therefore hold that an occupant who is

absent due to a lawful detention or arrest stands in the

same shoes as an occupant who is absent for any other

reason.

This conclusion does not “make a mockery of Randolph,”

as petitioner protests. Brief for Petitioner 9. It simply

accepts Randolph on its own terms. The Randolph hold-

ing unequivocally requires the presence of the objecting

occupant in every situation other than the one mentioned

in the dictum discussed above.

B

This brings us to petitioner’s second argument, viz., that

his objection, made at the threshold of the premises that

the police wanted to search, remained effective until he

changed his mind and withdrew his objection. This argu-

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 11

Opinion of the Court

ment is inconsistent with Randolph’s reasoning in at least

two important ways. First, the argument cannot be

squared with the “widely shared social expectations” or

“customary social usage” upon which the Randolph hold-

ing was based. See 547 U. S., at 111, 121. Explaining

why consent by one occupant could not override an objec-

tion by a physically present occupant, the Randolph Court

stated:

“[I]t is fair to say that a caller standing at the door of

shared premises would have no confidence that one

occupant’s invitation was a sufficiently good reason to

enter when a fellow tenant stood there saying, ‘stay

out.’ Without some very good reason, no sensible per-

son would go inside under those conditions.” Id., at

113.

It seems obvious that the calculus of this hypothetical

caller would likely be quite different if the objecting tenant

was not standing at the door. When the objecting occu-

pant is standing at the threshold saying “stay out,” a

friend or visitor invited to enter by another occupant can

expect at best an uncomfortable scene and at worst vio-

lence if he or she tries to brush past the objector. But

when the objector is not on the scene (and especially when

it is known that the objector will not return during the

course of the visit), the friend or visitor is much more

likely to accept the invitation to enter.5 Thus, petitioner’s

——————

5 Although the dissent intimates that “customary social usage” goes

further than this, see post, at 4, the dissent provides no support for this

doubtful proposition. In the present case, for example, suppose that

Rojas had called a relative, a friend, a supportive neighbor, or a person

who works for a group that aids battered women and had invited that

individual to enter and examine the premises while petitioner was in

jail. Would any of those invitees have felt that it was beyond Rojas’

authority to extend that invitation over petitioner’s objection?

Instead of attempting to show that such persons would have felt it

improper to accept this invitation, the dissent quickly changes the

12 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

argument is inconsistent with Randolph’s reasoning.

Second, petitioner’s argument would create the very sort

of practical complications that Randolph sought to avoid.

The Randolph Court recognized that it was adopting a

“formalis[tic]” rule, but it did so in the interests of “simple

clarity” and administrability. Id., at 121, 122.

The rule that petitioner would have us adopt would

produce a plethora of practical problems. For one thing,

there is the question of duration. Petitioner argues that

an objection, once made, should last until it is withdrawn

by the objector, but such a rule would be unreasonable.

Suppose that a husband and wife owned a house as joint

tenants and that the husband, after objecting to a search

of the house, was convicted and sentenced to a 15-year

prison term. Under petitioner’s proposed rule, the wife

would be unable to consent to a search of the house 10

years after the date on which her husband objected. We

refuse to stretch Randolph to such strange lengths.

Nor are we persuaded to hold that an objection lasts for

a “reasonable” time. “[I]t is certainly unusual for this

Court to set forth precise time limits governing police

action,” Maryland v. Shatzer, 559 U. S. 98, 110 (2010), and

what interval of time would be reasonable in this context?

A week? A month? A year? Ten years?

Petitioner’s rule would also require the police and ulti-

mately the courts to determine whether, after the passage

of time, an objector still had “common authority” over the

premises, and this would often be a tricky question. Sup-

pose that an incarcerated objector and a consenting co-

occupant were joint tenants on a lease. If the objector,

——————

subject and says that “conjectures about social behavior shed little light

on the constitutionality” of the search in this case. Post, at 4. But the

holding in Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U. S. 103 (2006), was based on

“widely shared social expectations” and “customary social usage.” See

Id., at 111, 121. Thus, the dissent simply fails to come to grips with the

reasoning of the precedent on which it relies.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 13

Opinion of the Court

after incarceration, stopped paying rent, would he still

have “common authority,” and would his objection retain

its force? Would it be enough that his name remained

on the lease? Would the result be different if the object-

ing and consenting lessees had an oral month-to-month

tenancy?

Another problem concerns the procedure needed to

register a continuing objection. Would it be necessary for

an occupant to object while police officers are at the door?

If presence at the time of consent is not needed, would an

occupant have to be present at the premises when the

objection was made? Could an objection be made pre-

emptively? Could a person like Scott Randolph, suspect-

ing that his estranged wife might invite the police to view

his drug stash and paraphernalia, register an objection in

advance? Could this be done by posting a sign in front of

the house? Could a standing objection be registered by

serving notice on the chief of police?

Finally, there is the question of the particular law en-

forcement officers who would be bound by an objection.

Would this set include just the officers who were present

when the objection was made? Would it also apply to

other officers working on the same investigation? Would

it extend to officers who were unaware of the objection?

How about officers assigned to different but arguably

related cases? Would it be limited by law enforcement

agency?

If Randolph is taken at its word—that it applies only

when the objector is standing in the door saying “stay out”

when officers propose to make a consent search—all of

these problems disappear.

In response to these arguments, petitioner argues that

Randolph’s requirement of physical presence is not with-

out its own ambiguity. And we acknowledge that if, as we

conclude, Randolph requires presence on the premises to

be searched, there may be cases in which the outer bound-

14 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

Opinion of the Court

ary of the premises is disputed. The Court confronted a

similar problem last Term in Bailey v. United States, 568

U. S. ___ (2013), but despite arguments similar to those

now offered by petitioner, the Court adopted a rule that

applies only when the affected individual is near the

premises being searched. Having held that a premises

rule is workable in that context, we see no ground for

reaching a different conclusion here.

C

Petitioner argues strenuously that his expansive inter-

pretation of Randolph would not hamper law enforcement

because in most cases where officers have probable cause

to arrest a physically present objector they also have

probable cause to search the premises that the objector

does not want them to enter, see Brief for Petitioner 20–

23, but this argument misunderstands the constitutional

status of consent searches. A warrantless consent search

is reasonable and thus consistent with the Fourth

Amendment irrespective of the availability of a warrant.

Even with modern technological advances, the warrant

procedure imposes burdens on the officers who wish to

search, the magistrate who must review the warrant

application, and the party willing to give consent. When

a warrantless search is justified, requiring the police to

obtain a warrant may “unjustifiably interfer[e] with legit-

imate law enforcement strategies.” King, 563 U. S., at ___

(slip op., at 13). Such a requirement may also impose an

unmerited burden on the person who consents to an im-

mediate search, since the warrant application procedure

entails delay. Putting the exception the Court adopted in

Randolph to one side, the lawful occupant of a house or

apartment should have the right to invite the police to

enter the dwelling and conduct a search. Any other rule

would trample on the rights of the occupant who is willing

to consent. Such an occupant may want the police to

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 15

Opinion of the Court

search in order to dispel “suspicion raised by sharing

quarters with a criminal.” 547 U. S., at 116; see also

Schneckloth, 412 U. S., at 243 (evidence obtained pursuant

to a consent search “may insure that a wholly innocent

person is not wrongly charged with a criminal offense”).

And an occupant may want the police to conduct a thor-

ough search so that any dangerous contraband can be

found and removed. In this case, for example, the search

resulted in the discovery and removal of a sawed-off shot-

gun to which Rojas’ 4-year-old son had access.

Denying someone in Rojas’ position the right to allow

the police to enter her home would also show disrespect for

her independence. Having beaten Rojas, petitioner would

bar her from controlling access to her own home until such

time as he chose to relent. The Fourth Amendment does

not give him that power.

* * *

The judgment of the California Court of Appeal is

affirmed.

It is so ordered.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 1

SCALIA, J., concurring

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

_________________

No. 12–7822

_________________

WALTER FERNANDEZ, PETITIONER v. CALIFORNIA

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEAL OF

CALIFORNIA FOR THE SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

[February 25, 2014]

JUSTICE SCALIA, concurring.

Like JUSTICE THOMAS, I believe Georgia v. Randolph,

547 U. S. 103 (2006), was wrongly decided. I nonetheless

join the Court’s opinion because it is a faithful application

of Randolph. I write separately to address the argument

that the search of petitioner’s shared apartment violated

the Fourth Amendment because he had a right under

property law to exclude the police. See Brief for National

Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers as Amicus Curiae

17–23. The United States dismisses that argument,

pointing to our statement in United States v. Matlock, 415

U. S. 164, 171, n. 7 (1974), that a cotenant’s ability to con-

sent to a search “does not rest upon the law of property,

with its attendant historical and legal refinements.”

See Brief for United States as Amicus Curiae 23.

I do not think the argument can be so easily dismissed.

To be sure, under Katz v. United States, 389 U. S. 347

(1967), “property rights ‘are not the sole measure of

Fourth Amendment violations.’ ” Florida v. Jardines, 569

U. S. 1, ___ (2013) (slip op., at 3). But as we have recently

made clear, “[t]he Katz reasonable-expectations test ‘has

been added to, not substituted for,’ the traditional property-

based understanding of the Fourth Amendment.” Id.,

at ___ (slip op., at 9) (quoting United States v. Jones, 565

U. S. ___, ___ (2012) (slip op., at 8)). I would therefore find

this a more difficult case if it were established that prop-

2 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

SCALIA, J., concurring

erty law did not give petitioner’s cotenant the right to admit

visitors over petitioner’s objection. That difficulty does not

arise, however, because the authorities cited by the ami-

cus association fail to establish that a guest would commit

a trespass if one of two joint tenants invited the guest to

enter and the other tenant forbade the guest to do so.

Indeed, what limited authority there is on the subject

points to the opposite conclusion. See, e.g., 86 C. J. S.,

Tenancy in Common §144, p. 354 (2006) (a licensee of one

tenant “is not liable in trespass to nonconsenting coten-

ants”); Dinsmore v. Renfroe, 66 Cal. App. 207, 212–214,

225 P. 886, 888–889 (1924); Buchanan v. Jencks, 38 R. I.

443, 446–451, 96 A. 307, 309–311 (1916) (and cases cited

therein); cf. 2 H. Tiffany, Real Property §457, p. 274 (3d

ed. 1939) (endorsing the opposite view but acknowledging

that “there is little authority” on the question). There

accordingly is no basis for us to conclude that the police

infringed on any property right of petitioner’s when they

entered the premises with his cotenant’s consent.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 1

THOMAS, J., concurring

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

_________________

No. 12–7822

_________________

WALTER FERNANDEZ, PETITIONER v. CALIFORNIA

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEAL OF

CALIFORNIA FOR THE SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

[February 25, 2014]

JUSTICE THOMAS, concurring.

I join the opinion of the Court, which faithfully applies

Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U. S. 103 (2006). I write sepa-

rately to make clear the extent of my disagreement with

Randolph.

I dissented in Randolph because the facts of that case

did not implicate a Fourth Amendment search and never

should have been analyzed as such. Id., at 145 (THOMAS,

J., dissenting) (“[N]o Fourth Amendment search occurs

where . . . the spouse of an accused voluntarily leads the

police to potential evidence of wrongdoing by the ac-

cused”). Instead of deciding the case on that narrow

ground, the majority in Randolph looked to “widely shared

social expectations” to resolve whether the wife’s consent

to a search should control over her husband’s objection.

Id., at 111. I find no support for that novel analytical

approach in the Fourth Amendment’s text or history, or in

this Court’s jurisprudence. See id., at 128–131 (ROBERTS,

C. J., dissenting). Accordingly, given a blank slate, I

would analyze this case consistent with THE CHIEF

JUSTICE’s dissent in Randolph: “A warrantless search is

reasonable if police obtain the voluntary consent of a

person authorized to give it.” Id., at 128. That is because

“[c]o-occupants have ‘assumed the risk that one of their

number might permit [a] common area to be searched.’ ”

Ibid. (quoting United States v. Matlock, 415 U. S. 164, 171,

2 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

THOMAS, J., concurring

n. 7 (1974)). In this case, the trial court found that Rojas’

consent was voluntary, see ante, at n. 2, and petitioner

does not contest that Rojas had common authority over the

premises. That should be the end of the matter.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 1

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

_________________

No. 12–7822

_________________

WALTER FERNANDEZ, PETITIONER v. CALIFORNIA

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEAL OF

CALIFORNIA FOR THE SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

[February 25, 2014]

JUSTICE GINSBURG, with whom JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR

and JUSTICE KAGAN join, dissenting.

The Fourth Amendment guarantees to the people “[t]he

right . . . to be secure in their . . . houses . . . against un-

reasonable searches and seizures.” Warrants to search

premises, the Amendment further instructs, shall issue

only when authorized by a neutral magistrate upon a

showing of “probable cause” to believe criminal activity

has occurred or is afoot. This Court has read these com-

plementary provisions to convey that, “whenever practica-

ble, [the police must] obtain advance judicial approval of

searches and seizures through the warrant procedure.”

Terry v. Ohio, 392 U. S. 1, 20 (1968). The warrant re-

quirement, Justice Jackson observed, ranks among the

“fundamental distinctions between our form of govern-

ment, where officers are under the law, and the police-

state where they are the law.” Johnson v. United States,

333 U. S. 10, 17 (1948). The Court has accordingly de-

clared warrantless searches, in the main, “per se unrea-

sonable.” Mincey v. Arizona, 437 U. S. 385, 390 (1978)

(internal quotation marks omitted); see Groh v. Ramirez,

540 U. S. 551, 559 (2004). If this main rule is to remain

hardy, the Court has explained, exceptions to the warrant

requirement must be “few in number and carefully deline-

ated.” United States v. United States Dist. Court for East-

ern Dist. of Mich., 407 U. S. 297, 318 (1972); see Kyllo v.

2 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

United States, 533 U. S. 27, 31 (2001).

Instead of adhering to the warrant requirement, today’s

decision tells the police they may dodge it, nevermind

ample time to secure the approval of a neutral magistrate.

Suppressing the warrant requirement, the Court shrinks

to petite size our holding in Georgia v. Randolph, 547

U. S. 103 (2006), that “a physically present inhabitant’s

express refusal of consent to a police search [of his home]

is dispositive as to him, regardless of the consent of a

fellow occupant,” id., at 122–123.

I

This case calls for a straightforward application of Ran-

dolph. The police officers in Randolph were confronted

with a scenario closely resembling the situation presented

here. Once the police arrived at Janet and Scott Ran-

dolph’s shared residence, Scott Randolph “unequivocally

refused” an officer’s request for permission to search their

home. Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U. S. 103, 107 (2006).

The officer then asked Janet Randolph for her consent to

the search, which she “readily gave.” Ibid. The sequence

here was similar. After Walter Fernandez, while physi-

cally present at his home, rebuffed the officers’ request to

come in, the police removed him from the premises and

then arrested him, albeit with cause to believe he had

assaulted his cohabitant, Roxanne Rojas. At the time of

the arrest, Rojas said nothing to contradict Fernandez’

refusal. About an hour later, however, and with no at-

tempt to obtain a search warrant, the police returned to

the apartment and prevailed upon Rojas to sign a consent

form authorizing search of the premises. See infra, at 9,

n. 5.

The circumstances triggering “the Fourth Amendment’s

traditional hostility to police entry into a home without a

warrant,” 547 U. S., at 126 (BREYER, J., concurring), are at

least as salient here as they were in Randolph. In both

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 3

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

cases, “[t]he search at issue was a search solely for evi-

dence”; “[t]he objecting party,” while on the premises,

“made his objection [to police entry] known clearly and

directly to the officers seeking to enter the [residence]”;

and “the officers might easily have secured the premises

and sought a warrant permitting them to enter.” Id., at

125–126. Here, moreover, with the objector in custody,

there was scant danger to persons on the premises, or risk

that evidence might be destroyed or concealed, pending

request for, and receipt of, a warrant. See id., at 126.

Despite these marked similarities, the Court removes

this case from Randolph’s ambit. The Court does so prin-

cipally by seizing on the fact that Fernandez, unlike Scott

Randolph, was no longer present and objecting when the

police obtained the co-occupant’s consent. Ante, at 8–9.

But Fernandez was present when he stated his objection

to the would-be searchers in no uncertain terms. See App.

6 (“You don’t have any right to come in here. I know my

rights.” (internal quotation marks omitted)). The officers

could scarcely have forgotten, one hour later, that Fernan-

dez refused consent while physically present. That ex-

press, on-premises objection should have been “dispositive

as to him.” Randolph, 547 U. S., at 122.1

The Court tells us that the “widely shared social expec-

——————

1 The Court is correct that this case does not involve a situation, al-

luded to in Randolph, where “the police have removed the potentially

objecting tenant from the entrance for the sake of avoiding a possible

objection.” Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U. S. 103, 121 (2006). Here, as in

Randolph, no one disputes that the police had probable cause to place

the objecting tenant under arrest. But had the objector’s arrest been

illegal, Randolph suggested, the remaining occupant’s consent to the

search would not suffice. The suggestion in Randolph, as the Court

recognizes, see ante, at 9–10, is at odds with today’s decision. For “[i]f

the police cannot prevent a co-tenant from objecting to a search through

arrest, surely they cannot arrest a co-tenant and then seek to ignore an

objection he has already made.” United States v. Murphy, 516 F. 3d

1117, 1124–1125 (CA9 2008).

4 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

tations” and “customary social usage” undergirding Ran-

dolph’s holding apply only when the objector remains

physically present. Ante, at 11 (internal quotation marks

omitted). Randolph’s discussion of social expectations,

however, does not hinge on the objector’s physical pres-

ence vel non at the time of the search. “[W]hen people

living together disagree over the use of their common

quarters,” Randolph observes, “a resolution must come

through voluntary accommodation, not by appeals to

authority.” 547 U. S., at 113–114. See also id., at 114

(“[T]here is no common understanding that one co-tenant

generally has a right or authority to prevail over the ex-

press wishes of another, whether the issue is the color of

the curtains or invitations to outsiders.”); id., at 115

(“[T]he cooperative occupant’s invitation adds nothing to

the government’s side to counter the force of an objecting

individual’s claim to security against the government’s

intrusion into his dwelling place.”). Randolph thus

trained on whether a joint occupant had conveyed an

objection to a visitor’s entry, and did not suggest that the

objection could be ignored if the police reappeared post the

objector’s arrest.

A visitor might be less reluctant to enter over a joint

occupant’s objection, the Court speculates, if that visitor

knows the objector will not be there. See ante, at 11–12.

“Only in a Hobbesian world,” however, “would one person’s

social obligations to another be limited to what the other[,

because of his presence,] is . . . able to enforce.” United

States v. Henderson, 536 F. 3d 776, 787 (CA7 2008) (Rov-

ner, J., dissenting). Such conjectures about social behav-

ior, at any rate, shed little light on the constitutionality of

this warrantless home search, given the marked distinc-

tions between private interactions and police investiga-

tions. Police, after all, have power no private person

enjoys. They can, as this case illustrates, put a tenant in

handcuffs and remove him from the premises.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 5

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

Moreover, as the Court comprehended just last Term,

“the background social norms that invite a visitor to the

front door do not invite him there to conduct a search.”

Florida v. Jardines, 569 U. S. 1, ___ (2013) (slip op., at 7).

Similarly here, even if shared tenancy were understood

to entail the prospect of visits by unwanted social

callers while the objecting resident was gone, that un-

welcome visitor’s license would hardly include free rein to

rummage through the dwelling in search of evidence and

contraband.2

Next, the Court cautions, applying Randolph to these

facts would pose “a plethora of practical problems.” Ante,

at 12. For instance, the Court asks, must a cotenant’s

objection, once registered, be respected indefinitely? Yet it

blinks reality to suppose that Fernandez, by withholding

consent, could stop police in their tracks eternally. Cf.

ante, at 12–13 (imagining an objector behind bars serving

his sentence, still refusing permission to search his

residence). To mount the prosecution eventuating in a

conviction, of course, the State would first need to obtain

incriminating evidence, and could get it easily simply by

applying for a warrant. Warrant in police hands, the

Court’s practical problems disappear.

——————

2 Remarkably, the Court thinks my disagreement with its account of

the applicable social norms distances me from Randolph’s understand-

ing of social expectations. See ante, at 11–12, n. 5. Quite the opposite.

Randolph considered whether “customary social understanding accords

the consenting tenant authority powerful enough to prevail over the co-

tenant’s objection”; social practice in such circumstances, the Court

held, provided no cause to depart from the “ ‘centuries-old principle of

respect for privacy of the home.’ ” 547 U. S., at 115, 121 (quoting Wilson

v. Layne, 526 U. S. 603, 610 (1999)). See also 547 U. S., at 115 (“Dis-

puted permission is . . . no match for this central value of the Fourth

Amendment . . . .”). I would so hold here. Today’s decision, by contrast,

provides police with ready means to nullify a cotenant’s objection, and

therefore “fails to come to grips with the reasoning of [Randolph].”

Ante, at 12, n. 5.

6 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

Indeed, as the Court acknowledges, see ante, at 13–14,

reading Randolph to require continuous physical presence

poses administrative difficulties of its own. Does an occu-

pant’s refusal to consent lose force as soon as she absents

herself from the doorstep, even if only for a moment? Are

the police free to enter the instant after the objector leaves

the door to retire for a nap, answer the phone, use the

bathroom, or speak to another officer outside? See Brief

for Petitioner 28. Hypothesized practical considerations,

in short, provide no cause for today’s drastic reduction of

Randolph’s holding and attendant disregard for the war-

rant requirement.

II

In its zeal to diminish Randolph, today’s decision over-

looks the warrant requirement’s venerable role as the

“bulwark of Fourth Amendment protection.” Franks v.

Delaware, 438 U. S. 154, 164 (1978). Reducing Randolph

to a “narrow exception,” the Court declares the main rule

to be that “consent by one resident of jointly occupied

premises is generally sufficient to justify a warrantless

search.” Ante, at 7. That declaration has it backwards, for

consent searches themselves are a “ ‘jealously and care-

fully drawn’ exception” to “the Fourth Amendment rule

ordinarily prohibiting the warrantless entry of a person’s

house as unreasonable per se.” Randolph, 547 U. S., at

109 (quoting Jones v. United States, 357 U. S. 493, 499

(1958)). See also Jardines, 569 U. S., at ___ (slip op., at 4)

(“[W]hen it comes to the Fourth Amendment, the home is

first among equals. At the Amendment’s ‘very core’ stands

‘the right of a man to retreat into his own home and there

be free from unreasonable governmental intrusion.’ ”);

Payton v. New York, 445 U. S. 573, 585 (1980) (“[T]he

physical entry of the home is the chief evil against which

. . . the Fourth Amendment is directed.” (internal quota-

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 7

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

tion marks omitted)).3

In this case, the police could readily have obtained a

warrant to search the shared residence.4 The Court does

——————

3 I agree with the Court that when a sole owner or occupant consents

to a search, the police can enter without obtaining a warrant. See ante,

at 5–6. Where multiple persons occupy the premises, it is true, this

Court has upheld warrantless home searches based on one tenant’s

consent; those cases, however, did not involve, as this case does, an

occupant who told the police they could not enter. See United States v.

Matlock, 415 U. S. 164 (1974) (police relied on cotenant’s consent to

search when other tenant had already been detained in a nearby squad

car); Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U. S. 177 (1990) (same, when the other

tenant was asleep in the bedroom). The Court’s rationale for allowing a

search to proceed in those instances—that co-occupants “assum[e] the

risk that one of their number might permit the common area to be

searched,” Matlock, 415 U. S., at 171, n. 7—does not apply where, as

here, an occupant on the premises explicitly tells the police they cannot

search his home sans warrant. See United States v. Henderson, 536

F. 3d 776, 788 (CA7 2008) (Rovner, J., dissenting) (in such circum-

stances, the objector “has not assumed the risk that his co-tenant may

subsequently admit the visitor, because all choice has been taken from

him in his involuntary removal from the premises”).

4 The Court dismisses as “beside the point” the undeniable fact that

the police easily could have obtained a warrant. Ante, at 6, n. 4. There

may be circumstances, the Court observes, in which the police, faced

with a cotenant’s objection, will lack probable cause to obtain a war-

rant. That same argument was considered and rejected by the Court in

Randolph, which recognized that “alternatives to disputed consent will

not always open the door to search for evidence that the police suspect

is inside.” 547 U. S., at 120. Moreover, it is unlikely that police,

possessing an objective basis to arrest an objecting tenant, will never-

theless lack probable cause to obtain a search warrant. Probable cause

to arrest, I recognize, calls for a showing discrete from the showing

needed to establish probable cause to search a home. But “where, as

here, a suspect is arrested at or near his residence, it will often ‘be

permissible to infer that the instrumentalities and fruits of th[e] crime

are presently in that person’s residence.’ ” Brief for National Associa-

tion of Criminal Defense Lawyers as Amicus Curiae 25 (quoting 2 W.

LaFave, Search and Seizure §3.1(b) (5th ed. 2011)). And as the Court

observed in Randolph, if a warrant may be impeded by a tenant’s

refusal to consent, “[a] co-tenant acting on [her] own initiative may be

able to deliver evidence to the police, and . . . tell the police what [s]he

8 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

not dispute this, but instead disparages the warrant re-

quirement as inconvenient, burdensome, entailing delay

“[e]ven with modern technological advances.” Ante, at 14.

Shut from the Court’s sight is the ease and speed with

which search warrants nowadays can be obtained. See

Missouri v. McNeely, 569 U. S. ___, ___ (2013) (slip op., at

11) (observing that technology now “allow[s] for the more

expeditious processing of warrant applications,” and citing

state statutes permitting warrants to be obtained “remotely

through various means, including telephonic or radio

communication, electronic communication . . . , and video

conferencing”). See also Brief for National Association of

Criminal Defense Lawyers as Amicus Curiae 29 (describ-

ing California’s procedures for electronic warrant applica-

tions). With these developments in view, dilution of the

warrant requirement should be vigilantly resisted.

Although the police have probable cause and could

obtain a warrant with dispatch, if they can gain the con-

sent of someone other than the suspect, why should the

law insist on the formality of a warrant? Because the

Framers saw the neutral magistrate as an essential part

of the criminal process shielding all of us, good or bad,

saint or sinner, from unchecked police activity. See, e.g.,

Johnson v. United States, 333 U. S. 10, 13–14 (1948) (“The

point of the Fourth Amendment . . . is not that it denies

law enforcement the support of the usual inferences which

reasonable men draw from evidence. Its protection con-

sists in requiring that those inferences be drawn by a

neutral and detached magistrate instead of being judged

by the officer engaged in the often competitive enterprise

of ferreting out crime.”). “The investigation of crime,” of

course, “would always be simplified if warrants were

unnecessary.” Mincey v. Arizona, 437 U. S. 385, 393

——————

knows, for use before a magistrate in getting a warrant.” 547 U. S., at

116 (citation omitted).

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 9

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

(1978). “But the Fourth Amendment,” the Court has long

recognized, “reflects the view of those who wrote the Bill of

Rights that the privacy of a person’s home and property

may not be totally sacrificed in the name of maximum

simplicity in enforcement of the criminal law.” Ibid. See

also Randolph, 547 U. S., at 115, n. 5 (“A generalized

interest in expedient law enforcement cannot, without

more, justify a warrantless search.”).

A final word is in order about the Court’s reference to

Rojas’ autonomy, which, in its view, is best served by

allowing her consent to trump an abusive cohabitant’s

objection. See ante, at 15 (“Denying someone in Rojas’

position the right to allow the police to enter her home

would also show disrespect for her independence.”).5

Rojas’ situation is not distinguishable from Janet Ran-

dolph’s in this regard. If a person’s health and safety are

threatened by a domestic abuser, exigent circumstances

would justify immediate removal of the abuser from the

——————

5 Although the validity of Rojas’ consent is not before us, the record

offers cause to doubt that her agreement to the search was, in fact, an

unpressured exercise of self-determination. At the evidentiary hearing

on Fernandez’ motion to suppress, Rojas testified that the police, upon

returning to the residence about an hour after Fernandez’ arrest, began

questioning her four-year-old son without her permission. App. 81, 93.

Rojas asked to remain present during that questioning, but the police

officer told her that their investigation was “going to determine whether

or not we take your kids from you right now or not.” Id., at 93. See

also ibid. (“I felt like [the police] were going to take my kids away from

me.”). Rojas thus maintained that she felt “pressured” into giving

consent. Id., at 93–94. See also id., at 93 (“I felt like I had no rights.”).

After about 20 or 30 minutes, Rojas acceded to the officer’s request that

she sign a consent form. Rojas testified that she “didn’t want to sign

[the form],” but did so because she “just wanted it to just end.” Id., at

100.

The trial court found Rojas’ testimony at the suppression hearing

“believable at points and unbelievable at other points,” and concluded

that the police conduct did not amount to “duress or coercion.” Id., at

152. The trial court agreed, however, that Rojas “may have felt pres-

sured.” Ibid.

10 FERNANDEZ v. CALIFORNIA

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

premises, as happened here. Cf. Randolph, 547 U. S., at

118 (“[T]his case has no bearing on the capacity of the

police to protect domestic victims. . . . No question has

been raised, or reasonably could be, about the authority of

the police to enter a dwelling to protect a resident from

domestic violence . . . .”). See also Brigham City v. Stuart,

547 U. S. 398, 403 (2006) (“[L]aw enforcement officers may

enter a home without a warrant to render emergency

assistance to an injured occupant or to protect an occupant

from imminent injury.”). Domestic abuse is indeed “a

serious problem in the United States,” Randolph, 547

U. S., at 117 (citing statistics); appropriate policy responses

to this scourge may include fostering effective counseling,

providing public information about, and ready access to,

protective orders, and enforcing such orders diligently.6

As the Court understood in Randolph, however, the spec-

ter of domestic abuse hardly necessitates the diminution

of the Fourth Amendment rights at stake here.

* * *

For the reasons stated, I would honor the Fourth

Amendment’s warrant requirement and hold that Fernan-

dez’ objection to the search did not become null upon his

arrest and removal from the scene. “There is every reason

to conclude that securing a warrant was entirely feasible

in this case, and no reason to contract the Fourth Amend-

ment’s dominion.” Kentucky v. King, 563 U. S. ___, ___

(2011) (GINSBURG, J., dissenting) (slip op., at 5). I would

——————

6 See generally National Council of Juvenile and Family Court

Judges, Civil Protection Orders: A Guide for Improving Practice

(2010), online at http://www.ncjfcj.org/sites/default/files/cpo_guide.pdf

(all Internet materials as visited Feb. 21, 2014, and available in Clerk

of Court’s case file); Epidemiology and Prevention for Injury Control

Branch, California Statewide Policy Recommendations for the Preven-

tion of Violence Against Women (2006), online at http://www.cdph.ca.gov/

programs/Documents/VAWSPP-EPIC.pdf.

Cite as: 571 U. S. ____ (2014) 11

GINSBURG, J., dissenting

therefore reverse the judgment of the California Court of

Appeal.