A federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a warrant that used Google location history to find people near the scene of a 2019 bank robbery violated the constitutional protection against unreasonable searches
FILE - This aerial drone photo shows the Call Federal Credit Union building, front, Tuesday June 16, 2020, in Midlothian, Va. A warrant that used Google location history to find people near the scene of a 2019 bank robbery violated their constitutional protection against unreasonable searches, a judge has ruled. The decision could make it more difficult for police to use the popular investigative technique, privacy experts say.RICHMOND, Va.
“The warrant simply did not include any facts to establish probable cause to collect such broad and intrusive data from each of these individuals,” Lauck wrote in her ruling. Jennifer Lynch, surveillance litigation director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit digital rights group, said attorneys around the country could cite the ruling in their own cases because it is believed to be the first time a federal district court judge has ruled on the constitutionality of a geofence warrant.
In the Virginia case, a man walked into the Call Federal Credit Union in Midlothian on May 20, 2019, waved a gun and threatened to kill a teller's family if he did not get at least $100,000 in cash. The robber, who was seen on surveillance video holding a cellphone in his hand, escaped with $195,000.
Bank cameras showed the robber came and went from an area where a church worker saw a suspicious person. Chatrie’s location history matched these movements. Google said it is reviewing the court's ruling. “We vigorously protect the privacy of our users, including by pushing back on overly broad requests, while supporting the important work of law enforcement,” the company said in a statement.
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