On a military base, a soldier had been transferred for processing for release for medical reasons. Under standard military protocol, all electronic devices were searched for contraband, including pornography, and two images of child pornography were found on an MP3 player. The service member had no reasonable expectation of privacy in his MP3 player on a military base. United States v. Rendon, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 33557 (E.D. Va. April 21, 2009):<\/p>\n
Applying this standard here, the Court believes that military society would not recognize a legitimate expectation of privacy in the contents of a portable electronic device brought by a service-member onto a military base, which is examined for contraband during routine in-processing procedures. First, because of the unique demands of military life, soldiers on military bases have diminished privacy expectations. Henson, 27 Fed. Cl. at 593. This is particularly true when a soldier is entering a military base. The Court of Military Appeals has observed that an entry gate at a base is the functional equivalent of a border for Fourth Amendment purposes. See United States v. Stringer, 37 M.J. 120, 126 (C.M.A. 1993). In some ways, the inspection of a soldier’s possessions when he arrives on a base is not unlike a border search. The Fourth Circuit has observed that “extensive searches at the border are permitted, even if the same search elsewhere would not be.” United States v. Ickes, 393 F.3d 501, 502 (4th Cir. 2005). “‘The Government’s interest in preventing the entry of unwanted persons and effects is at its zenith at the international border.”‘ Id. at 505 (quoting United States v. Flores-Montano, 124 S. Ct. 1582, 1585 (2004)). Similarly, the military has an interest in preventing the entry of contraband material onto bases and into barracks. At entry points to military installations, more intrusive inspection procedures are warranted because the base command must be able to control its borders and prevent contraband from being imported. See Stringer, 37 M.J. at 126. For this to be effective, the military must be able to inspect items that might contain contraband before soldiers enter the barracks.<\/p>\n
Given this legal backdrop, from an objective standpoint, a soldier cannot reasonably expect that his personal items will be shielded from examination incident to his arrival at a military base. …<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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