Is the use of force to enter a residence reasonable?

The question of whether the use of force to enter a residence was reasonable was addressed in Regina v. Vadon, [2000] B.C.J. No. 2081 (B.C.S.C.). In that case, the police had a search warrant for a suspected marijuana grow operation in a house. The police officers used a battering ram on a door to gain entry to the house. Several officers rushed into the house with their guns drawn. They did this prior to announcing that they were the police and had a search warrant. Regarding the manner of entry, Williamson J. held: “Here, there is no evidence of a suggestion, let alone an explanation, of a violent response at this house. Indeed, the evidence was that if the police had grounds to expect such a response, they would have utilized the services of the emergency response team. There is no evidence of any discussion by the police officers on this issue with respect to this residence. Rather, the evidence indicates it was policy. In other words, something along the lines of the carte blanche criticized by Chief Justice Dickson, a routine practice of effecting such entry without regard to the actual knowledge of the circumstances pertaining with respect to a particular incident. To attempt to justify the routine use of a battering ram to violate, unannounced, a private residence on the grounds that there have been weapons found in some homes where there have also been marijuana grow operations does not come close to meeting the onus upon the police to show why they concluded that such force and surprise were necessary in a particular entry. It is clear from the comments in Genest that the Crown must lay an evidentiary framework to show that there were grounds to be concerned about the possibility of violence in this particular case. No such evidence was led.” (paras 20 and 21).