'No One Will Hurt You,' a SWAT Officer Promised an Hour After Houston Cops Killed a Couple Falsely Accused of Selling Heroin
Evidence from the scene of the disastrous raid seems to contradict the official account.
Fourth Amendment
Chicago Police Executed More Than 11,000 Search Warrants in Mostly Poor Neighborhoods Over 5-Year Period
As Chicago launches an internal probe of search warrants, new data shows where police are kicking in doors.
John Paul Stevens Was a 'Liberal Champion,' Except When He Wasn't
The late Supreme Court justice was an inconsistent defender of civil liberties.
Supreme Court Allows Warrantless Blood Draws of Unconscious Drivers
SCOTUS says it is constitutional for police to draw blood from unconscious drunk driving suspects.
Incensed by Warrantless Border Searches of Americans' Tech Devices? These Senators Have the Cure.
Ron Wyden and Rand Paul team up to stop Border Patrol from snooping in your stuff without good reason.
The Feds Want To Subject Every Burning Man Attendee to a Warrantless Drug Search
The Bureau of Land Management sees no Fourth Amendment concerns with searching American citizens for reasons to arrest them without probable cause when it comes to their event permits.
The Costs of Monitoring Your Prescriptions
State databases that track the medications we take invade our privacy without reducing opioid-related deaths.
California Considering a Ban on Realtime Police Body Camera Facial Recognition
We can still say no to mass surveillance.
New Hampshire Resists the DEA's Demands for Warrantless Access to Patients' Prescription Records
An ACLU brief bolsters the state's case, arguing that people reasonably expect information about the medications they take will be kept confidential.
Unlike President Donald Trump, Justin Amash Actually Fights Against FISA Surveillance Abuse
The most absurd attack against the Michigan congressman involves ignoring his entire history in office.
Are We Seeing Early Signs of a Facial Recognition Technopanic?
Or are Americans simply wising up to the dangers posed by cops having their "face prints" on file?
San Francisco Bans Police Use of Facial Recognition
Preventing a slow march toward automated authoritarianism?
Forensic Experts Find 'No Evidence' That Houston Narcs Who Killed Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas Encountered Gunfire As They Entered the House
The physical evidence at the scene seems inconsistent with the story told by the officers who conducted the no-knock drug raid.
Detroit Will Pay Out $60,000 to Woman Whose Dogs Were Shot on a Marijuana Raid
The settlement is the latest in a string of costly settlements resulting from violent drug raids by Detroit police that left family pets dead.
San Francisco a Step Closer to Banning Police Use of Facial Recognition Surveillance
Other state and cities should consider doing the same thing
A Leftist Makes the Case for Originalism
What’s worse for the left, a conservative originalist or a conservative living constitutionalist?
The ACLU is Suing D.C. Police for Searching a Home Without a Warrant
The Metropolitan Police Department was in the middle of a legal battle with the family when the warrantless search was conducted.
Federal Court: Chalking Tires Is Trespassing, Not Police Work
And it's a violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Going to Burning Man? The Feds Want You Searched for Drugs
Can the government demand a warrantless search with no probable cause of ticket holders as a condition of issuing an event permit?
Preventing Government Facial Recognition Oppression
Pervasive real-time police surveillance is not just theoretical anymore.
How the Feds Are Using Civil Asset Forfeiture to Threaten Free Speech
Sex, publishing, and quasi-legal theft collide in the Backpage prosecution.
U.S. Citizens Sue Border Patrol Agent Who Detained Them for Speaking Spanish
The ACLU argues that the 40-minute detention violated the Fourth and 14th amendments.
Here's Why Rand Paul Will Vote 'No' on AG Nominee William Barr
Paul cited Barr's past support for warrantless surveillance. He's right to be worried.
Second and Fourth Amendments
"Since openly carrying a handgun is not only not unlawful [in Washington], but is an individual right protected by the federal and state constitutions [as the Washington Supreme Court had earlier held]," it cannot "be the basis, without more, for an investigative stop."
Supreme Court to Consider Whether Police Can Order Blood Draws from Unconscious Drivers
Warrantless "implied consent" laws are under review over Fourth Amendment concerns.
Judge Blocks New York City Law Demanding Airbnb Share Reams of Private Host Data
Online room-sharing services had no avenue to legally challenge demands for private info.
Kansas Supreme Court Says Cops Can Search Your Home Without a Warrant If They Claim It Smells Like Pot
Cops supposedly smelled 25 grams of pot inside a plastic container inside a safe inside a closet 30 feet from a guy's doorstep.
Syracuse Cops Force Doctors to Probe a Man's Rectum for Drugs, Then Bill the Man For It
Similar cases have resulted in huge lawsuits against hospitals and police departments.
Mandatory Warrantless Rental Inspections Inspire Seattle Lawsuit
Institute for Justice to city: Show probable cause, guys.
The 5 Worst Supreme Court Rulings of the Past 50 Years
Cases in which a majority of the Court fell down on the job.
The Government Says Falconers Have to Give up Their Privacy and Free Speech Rights in Order to Own Birds. Now the Falconers Are Suing.
"I'm treated no differently from a common felon on parole."
Wave of Burning Man-Related Drug Arrests Won't Go to Trial
District Attorney finds too many questionable stop and search practices in campaign of harassment aimed at Burners.
San Diego Police Creepily Forced Strippers to Pose for Photos. Now the City's Paying $1.5 Million.
A city ordinance let officers harass women as part of a licensing inspection process. A judge ruled it unconstitutional.
My Daughter's Middle School Plans to Teach Her Meek Compliance With Indiscriminate Invasions of Privacy
It's never too early for kids to learn that harebrained security theater is an unavoidable fact of life.
Court: Police Can't Shoot Unlicensed Dogs With Impunity
"Just as the police cannot destroy every unlicensed car or gun on the spot, they cannot kill every unlicensed dog on the spot."
Bloomberg and Trump Share a Love of Stop and Frisk
Both New York billionaires overestimate the program's effectiveness and overlook its constitutional defects.
Newly Released Eric Holder Memo: Feds Can Use FISA to Spy on Journalists
And the guidelines for spying on journalists may be even looser under Trump.
Michael Bloomberg Thinks Charlie Rose, Unlike Random Black Dudes, Deserves a 'Presumption of Innocence'
The former New York mayor defends his stop-and-frisk policy while suggesting the famous TV host did not get a fair hearing.
Brett Kavanaugh Calls Carpenter v. United States a 'Game Changer' on 4th Amendment Law
The Supreme Court nominee talks warrantless government surveillance with Sen. Patrick Leahy.
Court Says School Resource Officers Can't Arrest Students Just to 'Prove a Point'
A California cop arrested some victims of bullying because they were unresponsive during mediation.
5 Questions for SCOTUS Nominee Brett Kavanaugh
What the Senate Judiciary Committee should ask the Supreme Court nominee.
Burning Man Attorney Threatens Bureau of Indian Affairs Over Traffic Stops
The feds insist it's just a coincidence that an opioid task force targeted the one road to Burning Man as the event ramped up.
Baltimore Cop Quits After Pummeling a Man for Disrespecting His Authority
The Saturday incident immediately prompted an investigation because it was captured on bystander video.
Rand Paul Says He Will Vote Yes on SCOTUS Nominee Brett Kavanaugh
"After meeting Judge Kavanaugh and reviewing his record, I have decided to support his nomination."
Likely Sarcastic Facebook Post Can't Justify Arrest of Author for Threats
Police generally need to investigate matters further, to see if the post was really a threat or sarcasm -- and if they don't investigate further, and don't have a good reason for the immediate arrest, they can be sued for a Fourth Amendment violation, and be denied qualified immunity.
Why Rand Paul Is 'Very Concerned' About Brett Kavanaugh and the Fourth Amendment
The Republican senator questions the record of the SCOTUS nominee.
Can Border Agents Search Your Phone Without a Warrant?
The requirement to get a warrant may not apply when an American citizen is returning home from abroad and U.S. border officials want to search the contents of that person's phone.
National Ban on Smoking in Public Housing Is Unconstitutional, Lawsuit Says
Tenants are challenging a HUD rule that requires local public housing authorities across the country to prohibit people from smoking in their homes.
