State v. Winchester, ___ N.C. App. ___, 818 S.E.2d 306 (Jul. 17, 2018)

The court rejected the defendant’s argument that the search of the premises was unreasonable. The defendant argued that because the officers deliberately waited until he vacated the premises before breaking open the door without knocking and announcing their presence, they violated the statutory knock and announce requirement. Here, before executing the warrant a detective loudly announced three times that officers would be entering the residence to execute the search warrant. After waiting a reasonable time and hearing no response officers made a forced entry into the residence. These facts establish that no statutory violation occurred.