Did ATF agents wait long enough after they knocked and before they kicked in Bryan Malinowski's front door? That question is of grave concern to everyone, his attorney says.

Pulaski County Prosecutor announces he won't charge anyone in the killing of Mr. Malinowski.

Jay C. Grelen, Moniteur de l'Arkansas

The Arkansas State Police and the Pulaski County prosecutor stuck to evidence about the use of deadly force in the shooting death of Bryan Malinowski without concluding whether ATF agents broke the law when they kicked in the front door of Mr. Malinowski’s home in a pre-dawn raid.

“But that question should be a matter of grave concern for all of us,” said Bud Cummins, the Little Rock attorney who represents Mr. Malinowski’s widow, Maer. “The Fourth Amendment means more than 28 seconds to every single one of us.”

Mr. Cummins was referring to the 28 seconds that State Police say armed ATF agents outfitted in full riot gear announced themselves at Mr. Malinowski’s front door and when they broke into his home.

Mr. Malinowski, who was not aware that the ATF had been investigating him for more than three months, awoke when he heard commotion. He grabbed a pistol, loaded it, and strode down the hall toward the front door. His wife was two steps behind him. Mr. Malinowski likely thought the people inside his house were home invaders when he fired the first shots at them.

Agents returned fire. At least one bullet struck Mr. Malinowski in the head. Although he likely was dead before he was removed from the house, he was pronounced dead two days later. Doctor kept him functioning in order to harvest organs for donation.

The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution limits the use of search warrants and prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures.

ATF agents were investigating Mr. Malinowski, who bought and sold guns as a hobby, because agents had concluded he probably needed a $200 license to pursue his avocation.

“A search warrant is not supposed to necessarily be a license for a home invasion, especially during an investigation of such a low-level violation with such little risk involved in the search,” Mr. Cummins said.

In cases that involve illegal narcotics or other evidence that can be flushed down a toilet or there is a risk that a suspect will flee, a “reasonable” time to wait between the knock and entrance may be short, said Mr. Cummins, who was U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas under President George W. Bush.

“None of those or any other exigent circumstances or urgent risks existed on the morning of the Malinowski raid,” he said.

Mr. Cummins understands the limits of the State Police investigation and the evidence that Mr. Jones considered.

“The prosecutor based his decision on the right of any law enforcement office to defend his life with deadly force,” Mr. Cummins said. “The prosecutor had his duty to perform, and he did it as God showed him the light to see that duty. But this is far from over.”