GOP Platform Wants It Both Ways on Encryption
The infamous concept of 'balance' rears its head.
Fourth Amendment
Faulty Tests Create Fake Drug Crimes
Cops and prosecutors continue to put unjustified faith in notoriously unreliable field kits.
The ACLU Counts the Ways Trump Would Violate Civil Liberties
On immigration, surveillance, torture, and press freedom, Trump's ideas are not just bad-they're unconstitutional.
Lying Drug Tests Incriminate Innocent People
Unreliable field kits result in false convictions as well as false accusations.
The Fourth Amendment Gets Its Own House Caucus to Demand Its Respect
Coalition of 25 bipartisan lawmakers organizes against unwarranted surveillance and data collection.
Despite Medical Marijuana, Pot Smell Justifies Searches in Arizona
The state's top court rules that the odor of plants or burnt bud provides probable cause "in most circumstances."
Sonia Sotomayor Stands Up for the Fourth Amendment
Justice Sotomayor emerges as an outspoken Fourth Amendment defender.
Supreme Court Says 4th Amendment Prohibits Warrantless Blood Tests of Suspected Drunk Drivers
But SCOTUS does allow warrantless DUI breath tests incident to arrest.
Sonia Sotomayor Blasts SCOTUS for Excusing 'Lawless Police Conduct' in 4th Amendment Case
The Supreme Court issues its decision in Utah v. Strieff.
Bill to Require Warrants to Read Old Emails May Be Dead
Senate amendments attempt to increase government snooping authority.
The Fourth Amendment Is Supposed to Work for the People, Not the Government
The FBI thinks the constitutional right to privacy is a pain in the neck and they'd prefer to do without it.
Michigan High School Student Sues Over Warrantless Breathalyzer Test
The student is challenging a local ordinance and a state law for being in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Appeals Court: No Warrant Needed to Get Cellphone Location Data
Ruling overturns panel decision in favor of privacy rights.
Canadian Businesswoman Says Three Male CBP Officers Sexually Assaulted Her
They searched her body cavities for drugs, which they did not find.
Lawsuit Says Detroit Cops Shot Confined Dog Through Bathroom Door
Owners say the officers, who were serving a drug warrant, also killed two other dogs who posed no threat.
Arkansas Trooper Steals $20,000, Because Nobody Innocent Carries That Much Cash
Prosecutors tried to drop the forfeiture case, but the judge would not let them.
After Arresting Driver for Silence, Cops Tell Her She Has a Right to Remain Silent
New Jersey state troopers said declining to answer a question is a crime.
No Charges Against Cop Who Got Into a Deadly Struggle After a Door Hit His Foot
Determined to arrest John Livingston for assaulting his pride, Deputy Nicholas Kehagias ended up shooting him dead.
The Fourth Amendment and the Fruit of the Poisonous Tree
The USA Freedom Act provides cover for unconstitutional searches of citizens.
House Passes Bill Requiring Search Warrants to Access Your Old Emails
Current federal law treats online communications stored after 180 days as abandoned.
Justice Kennedy to Government Lawyer: 'You're Asking Us to Make It a Crime to Exercise What Many People Think Of As a Constitutional Right'
SCOTUS hears arguments in Birchfield v. North Dakota.
Today at SCOTUS: Warrantless Drunk Driving Tests and the Fourth Amendment
Supreme Court weighs constitutional rights against law enforcement powers.
Another Sexual Assault in Service of the Drug War
A lawsuit by a Pennsylvania woman describes a humiliating five-hour ordeal that discovered nothing.
Maryland Court to Baltimore Police: Want to Track Phones? Get a Warrant.
Ruling establishes that people have expectation of physical location privacy.
The Perils of Merrick Garland's Moderation
The Supreme Court nominee's deference to government should disturb progressives as well as conservatives.
SCOTUS Declines Opportunity to Limit Random Border Patrol Stops
The Court's decision leaves motorists vulnerable to the whims of armed government agents who can stop them at will.
Meet Paul Watford, One of Obama's Potential Nominees to Replace Scalia on the Supreme Court
What do we know about possible SCOTUS nominee Paul Watford?
D.C. Police Raided Hundreds of Homes Based on Little to No Evidence
In 284 cases over two years, officers used "training and experience" as justification for obtaining search warrants.
President Obama Wants a Back Door on Your Phone. But Not on His.
Secure communications for me, but not for thee.
Obama Administration to Expand Unconstitutional Warrantless NSA Spying on Americans
The new surveillance rules have nothing to do with stopping terrorism.
Rep. Justin Amash on Dumping Trump, Supporting Ted Cruz, and Why Apple Shouldn't Unlock its iPhone
Libertarian Republican from Michigan suggests Donald Trump might be "a bigger threat" to freedom than Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders.
Top Kansas Court Overturns Criminal Penalties for Drivers Who Refuse Alcohol Testing
The 6-to-1 ruling says it's unconstitutional to punish people for withdrawing "implied consent."
Edward Snowden: The Individual Is More Powerful Today Than Ever Before.
The national security whistleblower talks to the Free State Project from an undisclosed location in Russia.
How Scalia's Absence Could Protect the Exclusionary Rule
SCOTUS seems evenly divided on a drug search arising from an illegal stop.
Scalia on Drugs
Cases involving drug prohibition reveal the late justice's fickle fidelity to the Fourth Amendment and federalism.
Ted Cruz Says Apple Needs to Comply With the Court Order on Encrpytion, It's All Constitutional
Also calls himself a constitutionalist.
My data is safer with Apple than with a government
Which side are you on? Government spies or corporate guardians?
Scalia's Mixed Drug War Record
Drug cases show the late justice's fickle fidelity to the Fourth Amendment and federalism.
Scalia's Liberal Tendencies
The late Supreme Court justice was inaccurately described as "authoritarian."
How Antonin Scalia Shaped—and Misshaped—American Law
The late Supreme Court justice's mixed legacy on liberty and the Constitution
Sonia Sotomayor's Inconsistent Defense of the Bill of Rights
The liberal justice speaks out for the Fourth Amendment, but often fails to respect the Fifth.
What Rand Paul Brought to the Presidential Race
The Kentucky senator encouraged his fellow Republicans to be more consistently skeptical of big government.
Fourth Amendment Protections for Emails Inch Forward in Congress
Legislation would require warrants for old communications.
Tenants, Owners Resist Mandatory Rental Inspections in New Minnesota Fight
Can city officials demand entrance to a home with no evidence of violations?
Court Says Cops Who Protected a Mental Patient to Death Violated His Rights
The 4th Circuit rules that police should tase people only when they pose "an immediate safety risk."
Happy New Year From the TSA!
What fresh hell awaits you at airport security checkpoints in 2016?
Kansas Couple Whose Tea Was Mistaken for Marijuana Loses Suit Over Fruitless Raid
Robert and Adlynn Harte argued that cops should have known field tests are unreliable.
