Monthly Archives: August 2017

arstechnica: ICE: We don’t use stingrays to locate undocumented immigrants

arstechnica: ICE: We don’t use stingrays to locate undocumented immigrants by Cyrus Farivar: The acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal agency charged with deportations, has confirmed in a new letter that it does not use cell-site … Continue reading

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Infosecurity: DoJ Subject to Strict Oversight in Anti-Trump Site Investigation

Infosecurity: DoJ Subject to Strict Oversight in Anti-Trump Site Investigation by Phil Muncaster:

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Weekly Standard: Protecting Privacy; How the Fourth Amendment can keep up with high-tech surveillance.

Weekly Standard: Protecting Privacy; How the Fourth Amendment can keep up with high-tech surveillance by Matthew Feeney:

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N.D.Cal.: Use of a Stingray to track a phone is a search requiring a warrant, except in exigent circumstances

Use of a Stingray is a “search” and requires a warrant. The court notes the differing approaches of the courts, but this court has already weighed in in favor of the citizen. “Accordingly, the court determines that a warrant was … Continue reading

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Electronics 360: Smart Devices Versus Privacy

Electronics 360: Smart Devices Versus Privacy by Tony Pallone:

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CA3: CI’s conversations with def and officer’s observations was PC

CI’s conversations with the defendant coupled with the officer’s observations was probable cause. United States v. Ray, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 15827 (3d Cir. Aug. 21, 2017).* Defendant’s stop wasn’t prolonged at the point he was asked whether he had … Continue reading

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AK: Trooper’s call to PO about what he’d seen justified PO having trooper do probation search

The Alaska State Trooper called defendant’s probation officer and “told the probation officer that Bradford had needle marks on his arm, that Bradford had confessed to recent use of heroin, and that he was driving without a license. Therefore, the … Continue reading

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DE: Def doesn’t have to be named as a suspect for a SW to be valid because it’s a search for things which could be evidence

“It is Defendant’s burden to prove the warrant is unsupported by probable cause. Defendant has not met this burden. The search warrant was issued solely for the vehicle. Whether Defendant was a suspect at the time of the application for … Continue reading

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The ‘Smart’ Fourth Amendment, 102 Cornell L. Rev. 547 (2017)

The ‘Smart’ Fourth Amendment, 102 Cornell L. Rev. 547 (2017) by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson. Abstract:

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C.D.Cal.: Under collective knowledge doctrine, the officer making the stop doesn’t need to know the PC

There was probable cause from collective knowledge for defendant’s stop and the search of his vehicle for a hidden compartment with drugs, even though the stopping officer didn’t know what it was. United States v. Isshpunani, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS … Continue reading

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We already know the Executive Branch doesn’t respect the Fourth Amendment, but …

A serial violator of the Fourth Amendment is called a “great American patriot” by a President who recently encouraged police to use excessive force. And the SCOTUS hates the exclusionary rule, and Congress won’t update any privacy laws. Who will … Continue reading

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Oxford Univ. Press: How private are your prescription records?

Oxford Univ. Press: How private are your prescription records? by Leslie Francis and John Francis:

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ME: Officer’s crossing city limits in pursuit, even if a violation of statute, didn’t violate 4A

Even if the officer violated state law on his territorial jurisdiction, following defendant across the city limits into another town to make a traffic stop didn’t violate the Fourth Amendment and there is no reason to apply the exclusionary rule. … Continue reading

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Law.com: What the DreamHost/DOJ Battle Says About Search Warrants in the Digital Age

Law.com: What the DreamHost/DOJ Battle Says About Search Warrants in the Digital Age by Rhys Dipshan:

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OH10: Extraterritorial arrest didn’t violate state statute

Defendant’s extraterritorial arrest within the state did not violate state law. Remanded and the state constitutional question can be raised again. State v. Roby, 2017-Ohio-7331, 2017 Ohio App. LEXIS 3622 (10th Dist. Aug. 24, 2017). “In this case, Mincey does … Continue reading

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Forbes: What The Fight Between DreamHost And The DOJ Means For Technology And Freedom

Forbes: What The Fight Between DreamHost And The DOJ Means For Technology And Freedom by Frank Miniter:

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NY Times: DreamHost Ordered to Release Some Trump Protest Website Data to U.S.

NY Times: DreamHost Ordered to Release Some Trump Protest Website Data to U.S. by Tiffany Hsu A Superior Court judge in Washington on Thursday ordered the web hosting company DreamHost to turn over data associated with a Trump protest website to … Continue reading

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The Hill: Verizon reports spike in government requests for cell ‘tower dumps’

The Hill: Verizon reports spike in government requests for cell ‘tower dumps’ by Katie Bo Williams Government requests for the mass disclosure of every caller who connected to a particular cellphone tower have spiked during the first half of 2017, … Continue reading

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CA10: Criminal history questions during a traffic stop reveal no more than the computer check would and aren’t unreasonable

It wasn’t unreasonable for the officer to ask criminal history questions during a traffic stop because the computer check would reveal the same information. Travel plan questions didn’t extend the stop, and defendant’s gun was seen when he got out … Continue reading

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PA: Random suspicionless stops of boats on inland waters for safety inspection is unreasonable

Surveying apparently all the cases and statutes, Pennsylvania decides that random suspicionless stops of boats violate both the Fourth Amendment and the state constitution. The court distinguishes stops on the open seas upheld in United States v. Villa monte-Marquez. “Thus, … Continue reading

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