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New California law bans warrantless searches of cell phones

KBCraig

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2007
Messages
4,886
Location
Granite State of Mind
(CNN) -- If you get arrested in California for any reason, the photos, e-mails and other personal data on your cell phone are now a bit safer from prying police eyes. A new law now requires law-enforcement officers in that state to obtain a warrant before searching the cell phone of a person placed under arrest.

This law overrides a January ruling by the California Supreme Court. According to California Sen. Mark Leno, who sponsored the legislation, this ruling had "legalized the warrantless search of cell phones during an arrest, regardless of whether the information on the phone is relevant to the arrest or if criminal charges are ever filed."

The new California law unanimously passed in the state Assembly. Today the office of Gov. Jerry Brown confirmed that since the governor did not make a specific decision on this legislation, it became automatically enrolled as a law this week.

Under this legislation, California law enforcement officers must first obtain a search warrant when there is probable cause to believe a suspect's portable electronic device contains evidence of a crime.


More details and background at the article:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/09/20/tech/mobile/california-phone-search-law/index.html
 

skidmark

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jan 15, 2007
Messages
10,444
Location
Valhalla
You: (collecting your stuff after being falsely arrested) ....uh, where's my cell phone?
Evidence Cop: ....uh, what cell phone?

Most often, by the tme you are released after being falsely arrested you have been processed through booking and your property was inventoried. You have the opportunity to write on the inventory sheet that you had a cell phone and that it is not listed on the inventory. If you are recording the event as it happens on the street you probably made some comment about them taking your cell phone, along with comments about everything else they take off your person/out of your pockets.

Motions to supress any evidence taken from your cell phone (even when you do not know specifically what they took) will if nothing else force them to disclose what was taken. Having thus disclosed that they took information they can hardly claim they did not take your cell phone, or did not use one of those "readers" to capture everything you have in it.

Although I am almost certain the California Legislature passed the law for all the wrong reasons, I am glad to see that the CA SC was taught a lesson about collectng evidence via inventory incident to arrest.

stay safe.
 

WCrawford

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2007
Messages
592
Location
Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Most often, by the tme you are released after being falsely arrested you have been processed through booking and your property was inventoried. You have the opportunity to write on the inventory sheet that you had a cell phone and that it is not listed on the inventory. If you are recording the event as it happens on the street you probably made some comment about them taking your cell phone, along with comments about everything else they take off your person/out of your pockets.

Motions to supress any evidence taken from your cell phone (even when you do not know specifically what they took) will if nothing else force them to disclose what was taken. Having thus disclosed that they took information they can hardly claim they did not take your cell phone, or did not use one of those "readers" to capture everything you have in it.

Although I am almost certain the California Legislature passed the law for all the wrong reasons, I am glad to see that the CA SC was taught a lesson about collectng evidence via inventory incident to arrest.

stay safe.

skidmark, sometimes I read your posts and think you've spent too much time with user. :) The two of you should be teaching classes.
 
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