Arrest, Search, Seizure, Warrant Was this a legal search?

[matthew81d]

The police showed up at my house because a friend had called because she thought I was sucidal. When the police arrived I was in bed asleep. I met them at the front door and explained that I was not sucidal. I also explained why my friend might have thought I was sucidal. The police recommended(told) me that I needed to go to the hospital. I explained that I was not sucidal and did not want to go to the hospital but rather just return to bed. The police told me that I had two options. 1) I could voluntarily go to the hospital or 2) they would arrest me and take me to the hospital with a manditory 72hrs watch. I went to the hospital and had my blood drawn and spoke to a social worker who released me 45mins later after my blood alcohol/drug test came back negative. I was never placed under arrest and deemed non sucidal at the hospital. While was at the hospital the police returned to my home/car and searched for a weapon. They found a legal gun registered to me. Only my foid card was not valid. They arrested me 3 days later on felony gun charges. Was this a legal search?

 

[mightymoose]

Nope, not a legal search... not with the info given anyway.
If you are facing charges as a result of this search then you should consult an attorney. Your voluntary agreement to go to the hospital was not a consent to search your residence.
And by the way- you did not have to go to the hospital. It may not have seemed like an option, but you could have simply closed your door and gone back to bed. As long as you were not acting crazy/suicidal the police would not have had a legitimate reason to make an arrest and force you to go.
I was recently in a similar situation with a schizophrenic who was off his meds. Unless I observe something in his behavior or he makes suicidal statements in my presence, it is tough for me to force him to do anything. If he does not want to go to the hospital I can't make him just because someone else said he isn't acting right.
In this case, the man had vandalized his mother's home the day before to such a degree that it would be a felony offense... and I was able to hang the arrest for the vandalism over his head that he decided it was best to "voluntarily" go to the hospital. I couldn't have forced him to go to the hospital just because he was off his meds, but once in custody for something else I could have taken him to the hospital anyway.
In short, my point is that the officer at the door isn't necessarily telling you the truth. He is presenting information in a way that will coerce you to do what he can not legally force you to do. That does not mean some officers won't overstep their bounds and still force you to go, but if they do they have hung their own butt out there on the line.
You gave the officers the info needed. Conversation over. Go back to bed. Shutting the door in their face might piss them off, but let them try to find a legal way to come in and get you back out of bed.