US EditionSupreme Court seems inclined to allow police to use geofence warrants to identify criminal suspects
The justices appeared open to limiting police use of the digital dragnet, which can identify cellphones near a crime scene and has split appeals courts.
- On Monday, the Supreme Court heard arguments over whether police use of "geofence" warrants to obtain cellphone location data near crime scenes violates the Fourth Amendment in the case of Okello Chatrie, who pleaded guilty to a 2019 Midlothian, Virginia credit union robbery.
- Authorities turned to a court-approved geofence warrant after exhausting leads in the 2019 robbery of The Call Federal Credit Union, compelling Alphabet's Google to search location data for devices within a 150-meter radius of the crime scene.
- Justice Sonia Sotomayor questioned defense lawyer Adam Unikowsky's argument that geofence warrants are too broad, saying the process "identifies a place, a crime, a timeframe." The justices appeared inclined to allow the practice with potential scope limitations.
- Broader legal battles surround "reverse keyword" warrants, which police use to identify users searching specific terms like "pipe bomb," as courts wrestle with how 18th-century constitutional protections apply to modern digital-age surveillance technology.
- A ruling expected by the end of June will determine if police can continue using location-based digital warrants nationwide, though a victory for Chatrie may not change his conviction because the trial judge allowed evidence under a "good faith" exception.
20 Articles
20 Articles
Supreme Court Considers Use of Cell Location Data in Criminal Investigations
The Supreme Court wrestled on April 27 with the constitutionality of police using cell phone location data while investigating crimes. During oral argument, the justices asked attorneys about how much privacy Americans could expect, as well as how authorities could obtain geofencing warrants, or warrants for cell phone data transmitted from a specified location. The case, known as Chatrie v. United States, centered on a Virginia man’s allegation…
Google Location Data Case Hits Supreme Court
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Monday in a case that could determine whether law enforcement can force Google to identify everyone near a crime scene, raising questions about Fourth Amendment protections in the age of smartphones and cloud-stored data. The case began with a 2019 armed bank robbery at the Call Federal Credit Union in Midlothian, Virginia. A gunman told the teller he had accomplices holding her family hostage, ordered the …
Supreme Court appears likely to let police keep using geofence warrants to track cellphones
The U.S. Supreme Court on April 9, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States NewsroomThe U.S. Supreme Court on Monday appeared likely to allow law enforcement to continue seeking warrants for the location history of cellphones near crime scenes, even as the justices wrestled with how far the government must go to protect Americans’ privacy. Some of the justices appeared to be searching for a middle ground during oral arguments in a case out of Virgin…
Supreme Court weighs ‘geofence warrants’ for police to get cellphone users’ location data
The Supreme Court probed the trickiest corners of modern technology, convenience and privacy law on Monday as the justices tried to figure out how far police may go in asking Google to turn over users' location data to help solve crimes.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 45% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
