State v. Warf, Unlawful Entry

Mr. Warf spent a lot of time at a friend’s house who still lived with his mom. Mom did not like Mr. Warf and told him he was no longer welcome in the home. Mr. Warf’s friend maintained that Mr. Warf was still welcome as it was his house too. The State was adamant that only the “owner” of a dwelling can give consent to enter the dwelling. The defense made it clear that the statute is not so narrow but also lets any person “in lawful possession” of the dwelling to give consent. Unless the son was a trespasser, he was in lawful possession of the dwelling. In fact every day police...