Privacy Law

Laptop seized at border isn’t like a handbag, judge says; evidence from warrantless search is tossed

Federal agents who seized a laptop computer without a warrant at the Los Angeles International Airport may not use the contents in a prosecution against a South Korean businessman, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson of Washington, D.C., rejected the government’s argument that the border-search…

May 12, 2015 2:07 PM CDT

Judge dismisses Nebraska woman’s lawsuit against ‘all homosexuals’ on behalf of God, Jesus Christ

A judge has dismissed a federal lawsuit against “all homosexuals” by a Nebraska woman who claimed to be acting as an ambassador for God and his son, Jesus Christ. U.S. District Judge John Gerrard of Omaha, in a ruling Wednesday, said it is not the court’s job to determine whether…

May 8, 2015 1:40 PM CDT

California man gets jail time for failing to disclose HIV status

A California man has been sentenced to six months in jail for failing to inform a sex partner he was HIV positive. Thomas Miguel Guerra, 30, of San Diego, pleaded no contest Monday to a misdemeanor health code violation, the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post and others report. At…

May 8, 2015 12:45 PM CDT

Criminal record expunged? That doesn’t mean it’s not available on private sector databases

Just because an individual’s criminal record is expunged doesn’t necessarily eliminate it from credit reports. Helen Stokes found that out the hard way, when her rental application was rejected due to Pennsylvania arrests in 2008 and 2010 concerning disputes with her estranged husband, reports the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.).…

May 7, 2015 4:25 PM CDT

2nd Circuit rules NSA phone surveillance program is not authorized by Patriot Act

A sweeping National Security Agency program that collects and stores so-called metadata for nearly all United States phone calls in a searchable database is not authorized by the Patriot Act, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday. Section 215 of the Patriot Act “cannot bear the weight the government asks us…

May 7, 2015 10:45 AM CDT

Cops’ use of cellphone location records didn’t violate Fourth Amendment, en banc court says

A court order authorizing disclosure of cellphone business records showing a suspect was in the vicinity of six armed robberies didn’t violate his Fourth Amendment rights, though they were obtained under a more relaxed standard than probable cause, an en banc federal appeals court has ruled. The government obtained cellphone…

May 6, 2015 6:15 AM CDT

Bill advances that would expand government surveillance powers in France

Lawmakers in France’s lower house of Parliament have approved an anti-terrorism bill that would expand government surveillance powers, including the ability to mine Internet data. The bill would require Internet and communications firms to record Internet metadata from all users in France, which would be analyzed for suspicious behavior, the…

May 5, 2015 11:53 AM CDT

Proposed legislation would allow companies to keep some data breaches secret

Proposed federal legislation would sometimes allow companies to keep quiet when hackers access their computer systems. The proposed law would require quick disclosure by companies if there is a risk of serious identity theft or fraud, the Wall Street Journal’s Risk & Compliance Journal (sub. req.). But there would be…

May 4, 2015 11:29 AM CDT

Justice Department to review federal use of stingray devices

The U.S. Justice Department is reviewing use of stingray devices by federal agencies and will reveal more information about why the devices are used, according to a published report. The stingray devices, also known by the names “hailstorm” and “dirtbox,” mimic cellphone towers to scan possibly thousands of cellphones and…

May 4, 2015 11:12 AM CDT

Should cops’ body cam footage be made public? Lawmakers and police chiefs consider the issues

The increased use of body cameras by police officers has led to a debate over whether the recordings should be made public. Fifteen state legislatures are moving to limit public access even as activists clamor for release of the videos, the New York Times reports. In Bremerton, Washington, the police…

Apr 28, 2015 6:15 AM CDT

Legal invoices in inmate suits are exempt from open records law, California court says

A California appeals court last week turned down an open records request for invoices documenting legal fees paid to law firms defending Los Angeles County in inmate lawsuits. The California Court of Appeal, Second District, ruled (PDF) on April 13 that the records were confidential communications that were exempt from…

Apr 24, 2015 11:43 AM CDT

Was chief justice’s vote in dog-sniff case due to ‘Ferguson effect’?

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Tuesday favoring motorists in some dog-sniff cases had an unusual lineup. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was joined by three of the court’s liberals in her majority opinion, along with Justice Antonin Scalia, who has previously joined with liberals in some Fourth Amendment cases, and…

Apr 22, 2015 8:20 AM CDT

Stingray device evidence allowed in murder case; police skipped request for court order

Evidence from a stingray surveillance device that traced a homicide victim’s stolen phone to the home of a suspect can be used in the suspect’s murder trial, a Baltimore judge has ruled. Judge Timothy Doory ruled that the defendant, 47-year-old Anthony Todd, had no ability to “complain about a phone…

Apr 22, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

Prolonging a traffic stop for drug-dog sniff may violate Fourth Amendment, Supreme Court says

Police who use drug-sniffing dogs in conjunction with traffic stops can’t keep the motorist waiting after the ticket is written when they have no reasonable suspicion justifying the extra time, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. The court ruled in the case of motorist Dennys Rodriguez, who says police violated…

Apr 21, 2015 10:17 AM CDT

8th grader charged with cybercrime says he only intended to annoy his teacher

An eighth grader in Holiday, Florida, is facing a felony charge after accessing the school’s computer network and changing the background image on his teacher’s computer screen. The 14-year-old was charged with an offense against a computer system and unauthorized access, the Tampa Bay Times reports. Other publications with stories…

Apr 13, 2015 11:56 AM CDT