Obama Administration Appeals for Authority and Access With Warrantless Cellphone Searches

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Washington Post ‏@washingtonpost 4m

Obama administration asks Supreme Court to allow warrantless cellphone searches http://wapo.st/16pX1DV

In 2007, the police arrested a Massachusetts man who appeared to be selling crack cocaine from his car. The cops seized his cellphone and noticed that it was receiving calls from “My House.” They opened the phone to determine the number for “My House.” That led them to the man’s home, where the police found drugs, cash and guns.

The defendant was convicted, but on appeal he argued that accessing the information on his cellphone without a warrant violated his Fourth Amendment rights. Earlier this year, the First Circuit Court of Appeals accepted the man’s argument, ruling that the police should have gotten a warrant before accessing any information on the man’s phone.

The Obama Administration disagrees. In a petition filed earlier this month asking the Supreme Court to hear the case, the government argues that the First Circuit’s ruling conflicts with the rulings of several other appeals courts, as well as with earlier Supreme Court cases. Those earlier cases have given the police broad discretion to search possessions on the person of an arrested suspect, including notebooks, calendars and pagers. The government contends that a cellphone is no different than any other object a suspect might be carrying . . .

read: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/08/19/obama-administration-asks-supreme-court-to-allow-warrantless-cellphone-searches/?Post+generic=%3Ftid%3Dsm_twitter_washingtonpost


fascinating petition here: http://sblog.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Wurie_Petition-13-212.pdf

Question Presented...

WHETHER THE FOURTH AMENDMENT PERMITS THE POLICE,
WITHOUT OBTAINING A WARRANT, TO REVIEW THE CALL LOG OF A
CELL PHONE FOUND ON A PERSON WHO HAS BEEN LAWFULLY ARRESTED.

[MotherPetrie]

1. Well, of course it does. That's part of the Obama administration police state.

[geek tragedy]

2. Seems odd to say you can't look at the phone after arresting him. nt

[Catherina]

3. It's getting creepier and creepier. Thank you for posting. & of course the answer is NO n/t

[Ichingcarpenter]

4. 'LAWFULLY ARRESTED.

What does that really mean these days?

He looked at me funny so I arrested him lawfully because I can?

Forget the drug crack exclamations hyperbole do you see over reach that could occur if they get what they want?