SEARCH WARRANTS

The Supreme Court agreed today to decide whether search warrants give police authority to enter homes without announcing their intentions. At issue is whether the Fourth Amendment prevents such searches -- even though some lower courts have ruled that failure to "knock and announce" can turn a lawful search into an illegal one. Today, the Supreme Court agreed to rule on the issue using an Arkansas case in which a woman -- convicted of drug-related charges and sentenced to 31 years in prison -- claims that evidence seized from her home should not have been used at her trial because police walked in without giving notice. Last July, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that the Fourth Amendment doesn't require warnings.Post your opinion on theWashingtonbulletin board.