The U.S. Supreme Court is considering whether police use of GPS devices to track criminal suspects requires a judge's advance approval. The case being argued Tuesday could have implications for other high-tech surveillance techniques in the digital age.
The government's point in favour of using the GPS device is that people have no expectation of privacy concerning their travel on public streets.
A representative from the ACLU pushed the point that this case is not solely about Jones but about the future decisions of the Supreme Court, saying that soon the issue of GPS on a car will be irrelevant as authorities move to simply track out cell phones without warrants since all cell devices have GPS capabilities already installed.
But the Justice Department says the GPS device is no different from a beeper authorities used, with the high court's blessing in 1983, to help track a suspect to his drug lab. The court said then that people on public roads have no reasonable expectation of privacy.
The Justice Department said GPS devices are especially useful in early stages of an investigation, when they can eliminate the use of time-consuming stakeouts as officers seek to gather evidence.
Other appeals courts have ruled that search warrants aren't necessary for GPS tracking. The justices will be considering two related issues, whether a warrant is needed before installing the device or using the GPS technology to track a vehicle.
The government's point in favour of using the GPS device is that people have no expectation of privacy concerning their travel on public streets.
A representative from the ACLU pushed the point that this case is not solely about Jones but about the future decisions of the Supreme Court, saying that soon the issue of GPS on a car will be irrelevant as authorities move to simply track out cell phones without warrants since all cell devices have GPS capabilities already installed.
But the Justice Department says the GPS device is no different from a beeper authorities used, with the high court's blessing in 1983, to help track a suspect to his drug lab. The court said then that people on public roads have no reasonable expectation of privacy.
The Justice Department said GPS devices are especially useful in early stages of an investigation, when they can eliminate the use of time-consuming stakeouts as officers seek to gather evidence.
Other appeals courts have ruled that search warrants aren't necessary for GPS tracking. The justices will be considering two related issues, whether a warrant is needed before installing the device or using the GPS technology to track a vehicle.
