Supreme Court Rules Police Need Warrant to Search Your Cellphone.In a landmark digital privacy decision, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Wednesday that police officers must have warrants to search suspects’ cellphones upon arrest.
The justices ruled that police cannot search a cellphone without a warrant because they deserve special protection, as they contain so much information about a person’s private life, and they are pervasive. The court ruled together on two separate but very similar cases
Prior to this decision, police officers did not need warrants to search suspects’ cellphones. The Supreme Court had previously ruled that police could empty a suspect’s pockets and examine the contents to ensure officers’ safety and prevent the destruction of evidence. Now, the Supreme Court is saying that a cellphone isn’t fair game. Read more…