To obtain a no-knock warrant, North Carolina law requires that:

• A. The officers have probable cause that giving notice would endanger lives or third parties
• B. The officer's discretion alone
• C. The warrant must indicate no knock effect
• D. Only the judge can authorize no-knock entries

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that a no-knock entry is allowed only when there is a safety-based reason to skip knocking and announcing. North Carolina law requires probable cause that giving notice would endanger lives or the safety of third parties. That showing creates the necessary exigent circumstance for a judge to approve a no-knock warrant.

This is why the option stating that the officers must have probable cause that knocking and announcing would put people at risk is the correct one. It isnures safety and justifies bypassing the usual knock-and-announce procedure. The other statements misstate the requirement: officer discretion alone isn’t enough; the warrant doesn’t have to carry a special label indicating a “no knock” effect as a standalone requirement; and while a judge must authorize the entry, the decisive factor is the probable-cause showing of danger, not a blanket rule that only the judge can decide.