SCOTUS to Hear Case on FBI GPS Car Tracking Without Warrant
- Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:20pm by
Christopher Santarelli
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You might want to take a look under your rear bumper after reading this. It was in that spot that a U.S. college student found a tracking device the FBI planted on his car without a warrant last year. The Supreme Court has recently decided it will hear the case on whether the FBI action was constitutional or a violation of the young man’s privacy. MSNBC:
The 20-year-old college student who was being followed, Yasir Afifi, was born in Santa Clara, California, and is a half-Egyptian, half-American Muslim and U.S. citizen. Afifi is the son of a prominent Muslim community leader who travels frequently to Egypt and the Middle East. When the object was initially discovered the FBI did not respond to why Afifi was being followed and only commented to ABC News that: “Court decisions have consistently upheld that there is no warrant necessary for GPS tracking of a vehicle when the vehicle is in a public space.”
Perhaps not for long, as the justices have agreed to decide whether secretly installing and using a device amounts to the same thing as putting agents in a car and tailing someone.
What do you think? Fair or Foul?
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Comments (105)
V-MAN MACE
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:20pmTotal Police State.
RESIST!
Report Post »woodyb
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:19pmHow did this case get to the SCOTUS already, when will take years before they will consider the Odumbocare lawsuits??????????
Report Post »Favored93
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:12pmThe man is a US citizen for crying out loud!!! Muslim or not big brother needs to stay our of our lives UNLESS there is good cause and a warrant!!!
Report Post »They have turned a nation of KINGS into slaves!
Our lawmakers used to have to live UNDER the laws they made but that is no longer the case.
We need congressional term limits. then MAKE them live out their own laws.
The FBI can only do what our laws say they can.
Big brother is now becoming a task master.
10th MTN DIV SCOUT
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:09pmguilty until proven innocent! just like the military
Report Post »momprayn
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:05pm@KICKAGRANDMA – Yeah, that World Net site is where I got the info that I posted on here re Obama’s birth certificate being irrefutible proven to be fraudulent & they have submitted this info to the FBI, etc. – the Supreme Court refused to take it and nothing heard from the FBI. I had previously read about your info before. Yep — please see this also and make it viral – contact your Reps., Boehner, etc. to at LEAST call for an investigation. http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=317353
Report Post »kickagrandma
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:42pm@MOMPRAYN ~~~ Thank you! Will be making those calls bright and early Tuesday morning.
Report Post »woemcat
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:57pmthere have been some court cases that have said one’s driveway is fair game!!!! that if a car is in their driveway, the cops don’t need a warrant, but if it were in the garage, the cops would need a warrant. this is all BS!!!! if we‘re gonna bend over backwards to make sure the Gitmo detainees and illegal immigrants’ rights aren’t infringed upon, then we sure as hell better make sure citizens and LEGAL residents’ rights are upheld!!!!
Report Post »kickagrandma
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:33pmCurrent information just out. So very important that everyone, EVERYONE, see this video and get it going viral. Incredible planning to take over our government and complicit members of Congress involved. Please watch this, and pass it on. It makes what the FBI is doing understandable. STAND UP, AMERICA, while we still can!
http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=317705
Pass it on and get it going viral.
GOD BLESS, AMERICA, AND GOD BLESS AMERICA.
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:27pmThere are reasons why the obtaining of a court warrent for such tracking is required under the laws of the land (when they are followed), for we ARE SUPPOSEDLY INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY!
Not anymore apperantly anymore.
If the SCOTUS does not stop the FBI then no one will be safe; just as the admin is getting set up to raise the debt ceiling by executive fiat – we are only a short step away from a dictatorship now.
Report Post »beckbotsrlame
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 10:37pmMr.Obummer was elected in a fair and open election. Regardless if you like him or not he is as far from a dictator as can be. There are 3 branches of federal govt and many of you pea brain beckbots can not seem to grasp that. Hence you have statements like the cat persons. Where do you get your information from? Your dogma at times is laughable, like your comment about a little dust-up in the subway in New York. A conspiracy by Van Jones and the unions! Lady please, get real, go to New York and ride the subway you will see this type of thing happens often to varying degrees. Sometimes you regular BeckBot posters leave me scratching my head, are that many of you institutionalized or you just do not get get out very often. Shalom
s
Report Post »KENTUCKYREDBONE
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 2:46pmNowadays the presumption of innocence is a myth in most cases! From my experience if you are accused of something you are automatically guilty in the eyes of our justice system. Especially if its a Government person making the accusation!
Report Post »lynnissmart
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:27pmNot a good idea unless there is a warrant….otherwise, we will have FBI following people who do not agree with the administratin’s policies….just sayin.
Report Post »the_ancient
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:18pmIf the FBI cant get a Rubber Stamp warrant these days, then there is ZERO ties to criminal activity for a person
If this is allowed to stand, then we might as well say “FBI you can do anything you want, any time you want, to anyone you want…. Just make sure you make me FEEL safer while you do it, you dont have to actually make me safer, just make me FEEL safer”
Complete BS,
Report Post »clingingtogodandguns
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:15pmThis is crazy no they can’t come on your property and put a tracing devise.I have a shock for them if they try to do that to me.This is the FBI being lazy. If you want to track this guy then track him but anybody installing anything in my car is going to get one.Next is a tracking devise to track your mileage to tax you for how many miles you drive.
Report Post »TomFerrari
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:04pmToo invasive – You suspect someone of being a terrorist? TRACK THEM! HELLS YEAH!
Just be sure you stop off and get a court order on the way to plant a tracking device on them.
THAT would be Constitutional.
If it were URGENT, they should follow him in their own car, right then and there, post haste!
If it is less urgent, there is absolutly nothing preventing them from getting a court order.
If needed, follow him in their car, and radio for a court order. Once it arrives, plant the tracker at that time.
“Those who would sacrifice a little liberty for a little safety deserve neither and will lose both.” – Benjamin Franklin
Report Post »jrooster13
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:02pmDon’t care if the guy is muslim or not. Don’t care if his family are Egyptian or not. I don’t care if his family make regular trips to the middle east or not. You want to track this guy, you want to place a GPS monitoring unit on his vehicle and trace his movements throughout the day and monitor him? Get a warrant!
We keep walking down this road and the future will be very dim indeed. If we start giving the government a pass on this type of activity it wont be long until every single one of us faces the threat of gestapo like intrusion into our daily lives and privacy. We are already approaching territory where the government is showing extreme comfort and confidence in viewing the average US citizen as more of a threat than our true enemies (ie: Tea Party members and Christians more of a threat to the nation / Government than Al Queda or overtly hostile nations…. Iran, N. Korea). If we don’t hold the line on this and other such activities NOW, no matter who the victim we will deeply regret it. And sooner rather than later i feel.
Report Post »Dustyluv
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:02pmTrading freedom for security is not the answer. The answer is not to allow our freedoms to be given away to people like the TSA and FBI but to keep our freedoms by fighting evil. If not we will have a Gestapo. We are very close now. You want that? Some of you so called conservatives do! You are fools!!
Report Post »jc1776
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:01pmIf even one person is saved by this action by the FBI then its worth it. You can’t put a cost on safety! How many more must die?!?!?! (sarcasm aside, in all seriousness a warrant is so easy to get. I hope the court keeps the FBI in check- can’t allow this sort of thing)
Report Post »Mateytwo Barreett
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:09pmLa Caca por Toro, sen~or!
Report Post »country_hick
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 1:08pmThen you would have no problem letting the Bureau into your house to search it without a warrant? You have no problem with them pulling over your car without reasonable cause let alone probable cause? Hey! How about letting them install cameras in every room of your house? They just might stop you from hurting someone. And just in case you didn’t know those trackers can be downloaded or used real time.
Report Post »Av8tor056
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:00pmIf the FBI had enough evidence to get a warrant they would have. Tracking someone in the hopes that they’re doing something illegal? Wrong by so many definitions.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:56pmWhat’s the big problem? .. get a warrant … or won’t they give warrants to follow *******? Too many liberal judges? Bet they would have no problem with getting one to follow a Christian or Jew.
Report Post »hifi74
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:51pmJustthefactsmam
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:33pm
First step down a slippery slope if it is allowed to stand…
I was thinking the same thing as well.
Report Post »hole
Posted on July 5, 2011 at 1:29pmSlippery slope? We been down the slippery slope for ages now. I first noticed when I became subject to “random” drug testing. It’s all the same slope from freedom to slavery. We just need to find a place on the slope to be happy with ourselves, and mine isn’t near the bottom.
Report Post »SavingtheRepublic.com
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:42pm^____^____^
Tailing someone means they are looking to see not only where one is going but WHO they are interacting with. GPS will only show where one is going, there is noway an argument can be made that GPS is replacing a tailing agent. IMO you wanna track someone in this manner then a warrant is needed. Isnt it true they need warrant to tap phones etc ( I know I know they do it without too) but in general a warrant must be issued giving good reason. Ant type of electronic surveillance where data can be recorded and reviewed at a later date should require a warrant per the 4th Amend.
Regardless this is just another sign that we are in fact in a fascist police state. Its done with such subtlety no one will accept that label. Everyone is expecting some shock and awe moment for the “ah ha” moment. There wont be, it will all be done quietly, subtlety under the radar, you see it everyday, and accept it “for your protection”! http://tinyurl.com/3tg4s98
Report Post »EnoughBS
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:39pmJustthefacts,
my thoughts exactly!
Report Post »101
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:38pmEric Holder & POTUS selling guns to the Mexican cartel (terrorist)…and now the FBI illegally tracking w/GPS without a warrants…maybe if the FBI tracked the ATF they would find the real criminals are among them, working under false acronyms!
Report Post »Justthefactsmam
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:33pmFirst step down a slippery slope if it is allowed to stand…
Report Post »thinkinghuman
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 8:23pmspys watch people. there is nothing slippery slope about it. if you are paranoid, check your car out every time you drive, I guess. A car could easily follow ANYONE who is not expecting to get followed, and get away with it, so I don’t see what the big deal is here.
Report Post »quickstudy
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 12:18amNo kidding. How long before they justify tracking EVERYBODY using factory built in GPS. In the name of “safety” of course.
Report Post »fastfwd
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 1:06amYes and seeing how they have anyone that is an ex marine or voted for rand paul or is christian listed as possible terrorists, i would say the slippery slope has turned into ICE !
Report Post »BuckeyeDuck
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 10:14am“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” – Benjamin Franklin
Report Post »randy
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:32pmI have no problem tracking suspected terrorists. But if the FBI is permitted to do this, when will they track you and I?
Report Post »teddie888
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:10pmThey’d get bored tracking me
Report Post »Whitey4West
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:31pmI think that because this dude is a mooslim, it will be ruled as an illegal operation (the gps device).
Report Post »Cotswolds
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 11:42amIT IS ILLEGAL. Have you fools learned nothing from watching Glenn’s show? If they can do it to a Muslim it’s only a matter of time before they decide to do it to you. Equal protection under the law applies to everybody, even the people you don’t like or with which you disagree.
Report Post »tower7femacamp
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 11:51amThe Patriot Act has already ok’d this practice
Report Post »My God they are scanning you and storing images of your naked body
or Giving you a Pat down search just to fly on an airplane.
Do you really think they will stop the GPS tracking ?
Why do you think they put it in every car and cell phone ???
To protect and save you HAHAHA,,, That’s a good one.
sooner12
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 4:31pmFair, especially when it comes to muslims.
Report Post »american1st
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 5:05pmnot at all fair… and the religion certainly doesn’t matter, freedom is freedom…. the number of supposedly conservative people suggesting this is a good idea makes it obvious why our country is in such bad shape…..
no search and seizure with out a warrant means no search and seizure without a warrant
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
IT IS OUR CONSTITUTION!!! DON’T JUST TOSS IT BECAUSE SOMEBODY GOT YOU ALL A-FEARED OF THE MUSLIMS..
Report Post »yourbuddy
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 6:11pmyeah, dont do anything wrong, dont worry
Report Post »Texas Grasshopper
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 7:35pmthe country I grew up in required problable acause before the did stuff like this….that country was These United States …where did it go ?
Report Post »thinkinghuman
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 8:22pmSAME THING as tailing a car. GPS is a part of life. Not being able to use this is like saying, you can take a picture, but you can’t use a zoom lense. You must be where the people you are photographing can SEE you. That would be pretty ridiculous.
Report Post »Spreadeaglepatriot.wordpress.com
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 10:09pmThey who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.- Benjamin Franklin Who will they consider a terrorist next? A Christian? Jew? Patriots? What other liberties should we bend over forward for them to take?
Report Post »JRook
Posted on July 3, 2011 at 10:40pmShould be completely unlawful without a warrant based on sufficient evidence. Without the presumption of innocence and need for the state to build a case based on legitimately collected evidence, we have no legal system. The right of privacy against the state is the cornerstone of our liberty.
Report Post »banjarmon
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 12:12amI wonder DO the ever track The BEAST??? Where is the potus???
Report Post »jzs
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 12:24amThe headline to this story could have been written without mentioning the person’s religion, and if had, there’s not a person here that would consider this an unconstitutional violation of the individuals rights. Funny how easily you all shred the Constitution of the United States of America when it suits your predudices! Sorry folks, but this is America. If you don’t like it, go live somewhere else.
Report Post »gdbhusker
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 3:41amwell then don’t cry when one gets put on your car…..if we let them illegally track one group…then we let them track us all…..learn the constitution Landry……lol..be well
Report Post »ICEDRAGONNITE
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 6:02pmProblem is next week it Christians.
Report Post »This just plan sucks. Judge approved only with probable cause. Enough with “I have to be protected 24/7 by and inept government”.
jjrglobal
Posted on July 5, 2011 at 3:13amAre you nuts? They need a warrant, or you’ll be the one tracked without a warrant next
Report Post »Bill in Texas
Posted on July 5, 2011 at 11:20amWhat led him to want to look under his bumper in the first place? It’s not like we all just decide, wow I wonder whats under my rear bumper?
Report Post »I think he was told to look for things like this because of his fathers affiliations.