David Kravets writes: The Obama administration told a federal court Tuesday that the public has no “reasonable expectation of privacy” in cell-phone location data, and hence the authorities may obtain documents detailing a person’s movements from wireless carriers without a probable-cause warrant. The administration, citing a 1976 Supreme Court precedent, said such data, like banking records,…
Category: U.S.
ACLU Asks Sixth Circuit Appeals Court to Reconsider Cell Phone Tracking Decision
Catherine Crump writes: Yesterday we asked the full Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals to consider the arguments in our amicus brief that it should rehear a case decided by a three-judge panel in a ruling last month that undermined the privacy rights of everyone who carries a cell phone. In the case, law enforcement agents required Melvin Skinner’s cell…
A Question for Twitter’s Free Speech Defender
Somini Sengupta reports: Alexander Macgillivray, Twitter’s chief lawyer, says that fighting for free speech is more than a good idea. He thinks it is a competitive advantage for his company. That conviction explains why he spends so much of Twitter’s time and money going toe to toe with officers and apparatchiks both here and abroad. Last…
Missouri cell phone tracking law challenged
Saheli Chakrabarty writes: A Missouri law [HB 1108 materials] allowing police to track individuals’ cell phones in emergencies was challenged in a federal lawsuit Monday claiming that the state law conflicts with federal law. The complaint [text, PDF], filed on behalf of a Bolivar resident, asserts that the Missouri law should be struck down under the supremacy clause of…