File Carpenter v. U.S. personal location information and the 4th Amendment.pdf (493.271 KB)
Hi Class,
The U.S. Supreme Court case, Carpenter v. United States, decided June 22, 2018, is one of the few but perhaps the most important case in which the Court has examined newer technologies. In this case personal location information records created through a suspect user’s cell phone were obtained by the FBI from the suspect’s third-party cell phone carrier. The FBI used a court order based on the authority of a federal law to acquire these records, but not a warrant. Look at the Fourth Amendment and note how the Court applied Fourth Amendment privacy standards (think about reasonable expectation of privacy). The issues in this case were hotly debated as the case progressed through lower courts, and the outcome was by no means certain (it ended up being a 5 to 4 decision).
Summarize the important facts and circumstances of the case (what happened), including those key facts that you believe contributed to the Court’s majority decision;
Discuss what federal statutes and Constitutional Amendments were implicated;
Discuss what previous Supreme Court opinions the majority relied on (an example of judicial precedent) and the principles in those cases that helped them reach their decision;
Explain what is now required for law enforcement to acquire personal location information under similar circumstances; and,
Render a personal, informed opinion whether you agree or disagree with the majority opinion (suggestion: read a dissenting opinion before you decide).
HELPFUL HINT: Begin your paper with a two or three sentence introductory paragraph that explains the case, the majority decision, and whether you agree/disagree with the decision. Something like: “Carpenter v. United States, decided June 22, 2018
Sample Solution
