Department of Justice Wants To Track Cell Phones Without A Warrant
Now that the Supreme Court has ruled that the police must obtain a warrant before attaching a GPS device to a citizen’s vehicle, the Justice Department has let it be known that the new preferred method for spying on people is to track a person’s location via their cell phone. The issue was raised earlier this month when a congressional panel held hearings to discuss the need to conduct such cell phone tracking without the need to obtain a warrant. The Justice Department argued that requiring a warrant before tracking a persons location via their cell phone would “cripple” law enforcement. It turns out that America’s cell phone companies are cooperating with law enforcement and handing over this information without hesitation. They have even set up special divisions and even prepared manuals that assist law enforcement in obtaining tracking information. Your cell phone company is selling you out without us knowing. At the hearing, the representative from the Justice Department told the panel that they recommend that warrants be obtained to access this information whenever possible but that it depends on each case and varies from state to state and from courthouse to courthouse. Proponents of restrictions argue that Congress needs to get involved to pass a uniform set of rules and requirements that would be applied equally throughout the country.
James Dimeas is an award winning criminal defense attorney and author with more than 24 years of experience aggressively representing his clients in criminal cases. If you have a criminal case in Illinois, contact me in Chicago (312-229-5500), DuPage and Kane (630-504-2096) or Lake (847-696-6458) for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your legal options.
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