As technology is used more frequently in crime fighting, the question often raised by privacy groups is where do you draw the line on the use technology and its invasion on personal privacy. An argument on the topic of technology versus privacy moves to US Supreme Court this week.
United States versus Antoine Jones
The US Supreme Court for the first time will hear arguments this week in the case of the United States versus Antoine Jones.
The police installed a GPS device on a Jeep Grand Cherokee used extensively by Jones, a suspected drug dealer. Police then tracked Jones using the data gather from the GPS device. The information gathered by the GPS lead to evidence that played a key role in the conviction of Jones on conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
Recent Delaware and New Jersey cases
Over the past few months we have covered several news stories in the region regarding the use of GPS for tracking.
In a Delaware case a suspected drug dealer, was arrested after police monitored a vehicle with GPS technology. The case of Delaware v. Michael D. Holden revolves around a drug suspect who was was tracked using a GPS device for more than 20 days by police without a warrant. The court ruling threw out as evidence a duffel bag full of marijuana, the judge ruled on the side of privacy.
In a New Jersey case the court ruled a wife can use GPS to track cheating husband. The wife put a GPS tracking device in the glove compartment of vehicle which they both owned but was primarily driven by husband. The information from the GPS tracking device was used by the private investigator to catch the cheating husband with another woman. The court ruled against the plaintiff in this case, the cheating husband, stating that the use of GPS tracking in this case was not an invasion of privacy.
Understanding "Big Brother"
While most people believe that technology is a great tool for catching criminals, they fear their every move being tracked by "big brother." The youth of today hear the words "Big Brother" and perhaps think of a television show in which a group of people live together in a large house. The term "Big Brother" comes from George Orwell's 1949 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four describing a society in which the government can always spy on the inhabitants. The term "Big Brother" has become a synonym for abuse of government power in respect to civil liberties.
True privacy is becoming more difficult in the modern world of technology.
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