At both the national and local level, America’s Fourth Amendment rights are being reshaped to better fit the digital age.
In a unanimous decision on June 25, the nine Supreme Court justices made the searching of cell phones by law enforcement unlawful without a search warrant.
Citing the intentions of the Founding Fathers, Chief Justice John G. Roberts said in modern times it was important to extend privacy laws to cell phones.
Before the Supreme Court made its decision, Tennessee lawmakers had already signed a similar bill.
A bill was passed in the Tennessee House of Representatives with the goal of cell phone searches by police officers in cases of routine traffic stops illegal.
The bill’s sponsor, state Sen. Mae Beavers, R-Mt. Juliet, said she was proud that Tennessee was “right on top” of the Supreme Court’s decision.
“This has everything to do with our freedoms and our liberties and our Fourth Amendment rights in this country,” Beavers said.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation initially was opposed to the bill when considering time-sensitive situations that could adversely be affected by the legislation, such as a missing persons case.
“A typical two-hour wait for a warrant could potentially make a huge difference in the outcome of the case,” said Josh Devine, TBI public information officer.
Despite these reservations, Devine did express gratitude toward Tennessee lawmakers for making exceptions for cell phone searches in extreme circumstances or in cases of cell phones being abandoned.
UT’s take
Joseph Cook, the Williford Gragg Distinguished Professor of Law, said he supported the Supreme Court’s ruling.
“(The bill is) the most significant decision involving the application of the Fourth Amendment rendered by the Court in the just-concluded term,” Cook said.
Cook said that while the Fourth Amendment inherently requires a warrant for the seizure of evidence, courts have long allowed certain exceptions “relying on the language in the Amendment which prohibits only ‘unreasonable’ searches.”
Glenn Reynolds, the Beauchamp Brogan Distinguished Professor of Law, said that the Tennessee law was “legislative guarantee of protection in addition to the Fourth Amendment.”
In an article written for popularmechanics.com, Reynolds went on to say that the recognition by the Supreme Court that cell phones are “powerful computers, packed with all sorts of information about their owners,” will go a long way in ensuring the right to privacy guaranteed to all U.S. citizens.
Ultimately, Reynolds said that American’s rights are ever evolving to fit the times.
“Freedom of the press includes laser printers,” he said, “and the right to bear arms doesn’t stop at flintlocks.”
Tanner Hancock can be followed on Twitter at @TannerHancock26.
