State v. Johnson (1994)

In State v. Johnson, 75 Wn. App. 692, 879 P.2d 984 (Wash. App. 1994) the Washington Court of Appeals, applying the state constitution, found that a police entry onto the defendant's property at 1:00 a.m. to investigate a possible marijuana growing operation was illegal. But again, the time of the entry was but one factor the court considered in finding the entry illegal. The police entered the Johnsons' property via a state park, under cover of darkness. They opened a gate marked "Private Property" and "No Trespassing," walked down the road, and took readings from a thermal imaging device aimed at the barn. The Washington court found that the closed gate marked with "No Trespassing" signs indicated that the Johnsons had a "subjective intent to close their property." The court also concluded that the officers' surreptitious entry onto the Johnsons' property at 1:00 a.m. easily could have resulted in a violent confrontation.