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Member Since: 7/2006Last Seen: 11/06/2009

Court tosses case over GPS tracking. New York disagrees with Wisconsin.

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ALBANY — A Watervliet man will get a new trial on burglary charges after the state's top court ruled Tuesday it was wrong for a police investigator to slap a GPS device on the defendant's van to track his movements without a search warrant.

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{"commentId":7157606,"authorDomain":"jedipunk"}

I agree with the below statement ALMOST!

"A police officer can tail you without a warrant, photograph you, videotape you, see who's in the car with you and use it all as evidence at trial, but because a GPS device can be used to track your car more easily and at all hours — somehow that requires a warrant even though it provides far less detailed information," Horn said. "I fail to see the logic."

The part that fails is the part that requires attaching the electronic device to my vehicle.

Let me explain it this way:

If an officer has me under surveillance and is able to get near enough to overhear me on my cellphone and that conversation can get me arrested then that is legal.

If however the cop cannot stay near enough to overhear my conversation but instead "bumps into me" to attach a bug that can overhear me then that would not be legal.

I see the same argument with the GPS. The GPS tracking device is the equivalent of a eaves-dropping bug. Furthermore, the same thing can be said about the bug that Horn says about the GPS, it collects "far less detailed information" (i.e. no photos, no video, etc)

Finally, If my vehicles can be tracked visually from satellite then the same rules should be applied that are used for bionic ears and themo-devices.

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    Reply#1 - Tue May 19, 2009 7:51 AM EDT
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