Police in California are allowed to take your tablet or cell phone away from you and search it without a warrant. But yesterday the state Senate unanimously approved a bill that would require police to obtain a warrant before searching a person’s smartphone, laptop, or tablet.
If police are forced to comply with the 4th Amendment of the US Constitution, it will be the little children who suffer, say the California District Attorneys Assn., the California Police Chiefs Assn. and the California State Sheriffs Assn.
By proposing new procedures, the bill “undermines critical efforts to stop child exploitation, mandates the destruction of evidence by law enforcement, and violates the California Constitution,” the prosecutors’ group said in a letter to lawmakers.
Others who consider the bill unnecessary and a burden, but didn’t sign the letter: officers who enjoy going through people’s phones, finding naked selfies and emailing them to their buddies.)
Image: “It’s fun to get a ticket.” Shutterstock