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Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Duration of GPS Monitoring Must Be Considered in Individualized Reasonableness Determination and Resulting Monitoring Period May Be Shorter Than Probationary Term by David Kim by David Kim The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that the reasonableness of global positioning system (“GPS”) monitoring as a …
Article • December 15, 2025 • from CLN January, 2026
Ninth Circuit Announces Abandonment Doctrine Applies to Cellphones but Courts Must Analyze Intent to Abandon Device Separately From Intent to Abandon Data by David Kim by David Kim The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that while the abandonment doctrine applies to cellphones, courts must analyze …
Minnesota Supreme Court Announces Warrantless Buccal Swab Pursuant to Discovery Order Violates Fourth Amendment, Overrules Inevitable Discovery Precedent, and Clarifies Accomplice-Corroboration Statute Applies Only to Sworn Testimony by David Kim by David Kim The Supreme Court of Minnesota held that a buccal swab collected from a criminal defendant pursuant to …
New Jersey Supreme Court: Parked Vehicle in Police Parking Lot Not Subject to Warrantless Search Under Automobile Exception Where None of the Exigencies Justifying Exception Under State Constitution Present by Sagi Schwartzberg by Sagi Schwartzberg The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the automobile exception to the warrant requirement …
Protecting Your Digital Privacy by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso In an era of expanding government surveillance, protecting your digital privacy is more critical than ever. This article offers practical steps to safeguard your data from government and corporate surveillance. As digital threats evolve in 2025, with increasing use …
Drones and License Plate Readers: Police Creating Warrantless Aerial Surveillance Networks by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott Police adoption of drone-as-first-responder (“DFR”) programs is increasing and now integrating with automated license plate reader (“ALPR”) technology to create a potent new form of surveillance, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (“EFF”) …
Michigan Supreme Court Announces Guidance on Standards for Search Warrants of Cellphones to Satisfy Particularity Requirement of Fourth Amendment That “Reasonably Direct” Search to Uncovering Evidence of Criminal Activity Identified in Warrant by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The Supreme Court of Michigan held that a search warrant was …
How to Build a Human; A Forensics Company Tells Cops It Can Use DNA to Predict a Suspect’s Face. Scientists Worry the Tool Will Deepen Racial Bias. by Jordan Smith Originally published on February 2, 2025. Republished with permission from The Intercept https://theintercept.com/2025/02/02/forensic-dna-phenotyping-parabon-nanolabs-police/, an award-winning nonprofit news organization dedicated to …
Illinois Supreme Court: Use of Flashlight by Police to See Through Small Gap in Chained and Padlocked Kitchen Cabinet Doors Constitutes ‘Search’ Under Fourth Amendment by Jeffrey Cohen The Supreme Court of Illinois reversed the Appellate Court’s denial of the defendant’s suppression motion, holding that contraband discovered by police inside …
Warrantless Device Inspections Surge at the U.S. Border by David Kim by David Kim Travelers entering the United States are facing intensifying scrutiny—not just of their luggage but of their smartphones, laptops, and other digital devices—as border agents increasingly conduct warrantless searches, sometimes copying personal data for further analysis. Civil …
Article • March 15, 2025 • from CLN April, 2025
EFF Launches Rayhunter: A New Tool to Detect Covert Cellular Surveillance by David Kim by David Kim The Electronic Frontier Foundation (“EFF”) has announced Rayhunter, an open-source tool designed to detect cell-site simulators (“CSS”), devices often used by law enforcement and others to covertly track mobile phones. Running on an …
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court: Defense Counsel Had Actual Conflict of Interest Where Own Performance During Police Interview of Defendant Could Serve as Basis of Motion to Suppress Based on Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, New Trial Required W by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts …
Article • February 15, 2025 • from CLN March, 2025
Study: DNA Transfer in Social Settings by Michael Thompson by Michael Dean Thompson With every breath you take, you shed DNA. It is in the skin cells that flake off your body by the millions, the hair that floats off as you walk, and the oil you leave behind on …
Ninth Circuit: Defense Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Move to Suppress Evidence Obtained as a Result of Police Officer Trespassing on Curtilage of Defendant’s Home by Sam Rutherford by Sam Rutherford The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted a federal prisoner’s 28 U.S.C. § 2255 motion for habeas …
Illinois Supreme Court Announces Odor of Burnt Cannabis Alone Is Insufficient to Establish Probable Cause for a Warrantless Vehicle Search by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The Supreme Court of Illinois invalidated an officer’s search of a vehicle and held that the odor of burnt cannabis, on its own, …
Article • February 1, 2025 • from CLN February, 2025
Study Highlights Limitations in Forensic DNA Analysis Involving Lower Genetic Diversity Groups by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Not A University of Oregon study, “Decreased accuracy of forensic DNA mixture analysis for groups with lower genetic diversity” published in Volume 27, Issue 11, 111067 of iScience in November 2024 …
Article • January 15, 2025 • from CLN January, 2025
Protect Yourself Against Police Invasion of Your Cellphone by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney In Riley v. California, 573 U.S. 373 (2014), the U.S. Supreme Court recognized the reality that the amount of data people keep on their cellphones is almost beyond measure. The Riley Court ruled that police must …
Federal Law Enforcement Using Banks to Circumvent Warrant Requirement in Surveilling Sensitive Financial Data of Americans by James Mills by James Mills Federal law enforcement agencies have been gathering sensitive financial information of American citizens by manipulating the Suspicious Activity Report (“SAR”) system, according to the House Judiciary Committee. The …
Article • December 1, 2024 • from CLN December, 2024
Filed under: Databases, DNA Evidence
Forensic Genetic Genealogy: Police Are Searching Genetic Genealogy Companies’ Databases Regardless of Whether They Have Permission by Matthew Clarke, Ann Foster by Matt Clarke with research assistance by Ann Foster Millions of people have submitted oral cheek (buccal) swab samples to companies like 23andMe and Ancestry hoping to use their …
Cell-Site Simulator Proposal: A Glimpse Inside the Black Box Whose Secrets Are Protected by NDAs and Obfuscation by Michael Thompson by Michael Dean Thompson The cell-site simulator (“CSS”) is a powerful and largely unregulated device once designed for military intelligence use that has found its way onto the streets of …
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