Now that the Supreme Court has ruled that warrantless smartphone searches are unconstitutional, here's a bust-card for you to print, carry, and commit to memory so that you'll have it to hand when John Law wants to muscle his way into your mobile life.
If you forgot to lock your phone (or just didn't feel like it), the next step you must take is to “calmly and respectfully tell the officer that his search is in violation of the Constitution under the court's Riley decision,” says Stanley. (Riley v. United States is the name of the court case that triggered this new search warrant rule.)
Stanley suggests that anyone who is arrested “repeatedly” state to the arresting officer and any nearby witnesses, “I do not consent to this search.” By saying this key phrase more than once, you help ensure that “there is no question or ambiguity about whether you've consented” to the search, Stanley adds.
Making your feelings known is vitally important in this situation. And if you leave any room for the officer to legally justify the search, then no warrant is necessary.
What to do if police try to search your phone without a warrant [Andrew Couts/Daily Dot]
(Image: Day 290 – West Midlands Police – Helicopter Night Vision Goggles, West Midlands Police, CC-BY)
