The United States Supreme Court has taken up a crucial case that will determine the constitutionality of geofence warrants. These warrants allow police to collect location history from cellphone users to find individuals near crime scenes.
What Are Geofence Warrants?
Geofence warrants are a modern investigative tool used by law enforcement. They request location data from technology companies like Google for every person within a specific area during a set time period. This practice has grown increasingly popular among police departments across the country.
The Case Behind the Challenge
The Supreme Court case centers on a 2019 bank robbery in Midlothian, Virginia. Police served a geofence warrant on Google while searching for a suspect who robbed the Call Federal Credit Union in suburban Richmond.
Authorities used the location data obtained through this warrant to identify and arrest Okello Chatrie. Chatrie eventually pleaded guilty to the robbery charges. He received a prison sentence of nearly twelve years for his crime.
Privacy Concerns and Legal Arguments
Chatrie's legal team challenged the geofence warrant as a violation of privacy rights. They argued that authorities gathered location history from people near the bank without any evidence linking them to the robbery.
Prosecutors countered this argument by stating Chatrie had no reasonable expectation of privacy. They pointed out that he voluntarily opted into Google's Location History service, thereby consenting to data collection.
Lower Court Decisions
A federal judge initially ruled that the search violated Chatrie's constitutional rights. However, the judge still allowed the evidence to be used in court. The judge reasoned that the officer who applied for the warrant acted in good faith, believing the procedure was proper.
The federal appeals court in Richmond upheld Chatrie's conviction through a divided ruling. Meanwhile, the federal appeals court in New Orleans reached a different conclusion in a separate case. That court ruled that geofence warrants violate the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches.
What Happens Next?
The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in this landmark case later this year. The court will likely schedule the hearing either during the spring session or in October, at the start of its next term.
This decision will have significant implications for digital privacy rights across the United States. It will determine whether law enforcement can continue using geofence warrants as an investigative tool or whether such practices violate constitutional protections.
