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No Warrant Needed For GPS Tracking By Police

museumpeace writes "Ruling that a suspect nabbed using GPS sneaked into his vehicle by police without a warrant, has '... no expectation of privacy in the whereabouts of his vehicle on a public roadway,' a New York judge has seemingly moved the lines in the battle between privacy and police powers. CNET news has this story, which also says 'Not all uses are controversial. Trucking outfits use GPS boxes to keep track of their drivers' locations, and companies sell software to dispatchers that instantly calculates which taxi is closest to a customer.' But I don't buy that. Yesterday in Massachusetts, a snow plow operator, too dumb to know his truck had GPS, exposed himself to a woman at a coffee shop, hopped back in his truck and was apprehended in minutes because the state troopers, knowing only the location of the coffee shop and that it was a snow plow operator, could find his exact whereabouts."

14 of 641 comments (clear)

  1. tin foil anyone by AmigaAvenger · · Score: 2, Funny

    great, now i can take off my tin foil hat because I'm going to have to cover my entire vehicle in tinfoil!!

    1. Re:tin foil anyone by athakur999 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Just buy a Yugo. I think those things were made out of tin to begin with. :)

      --
      "People that quote themselves in their signatures bother me" - athakur999
  2. Win a free GPS! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Search your car to find out if you win.

  3. Damn double standards! by Wescotte · · Score: 5, Funny

    If a man exposes himself to a woman he gets fined/jail time.

    If a woman exposes herself to a man she gets whatever she wants!

  4. Would they really need GPS for that? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    "knowing only the location of the coffee shop and that it was a snow plow operator, could find his exact whereabouts."

    Of course, all they had to do was follow the plowed streets.

  5. That name again by martinX · · Score: 4, Funny

    is Mr Plow.

    --
    When they came for the communists, I said "He's next door. Take him away. Goddam commies."
  6. He should sue for theft by Lord+Kano · · Score: 4, Funny

    If this device was connected to his car then he would have been using his gasoline to transport it. If this was done without permission, the police have stolen (even if only a miniscule amount of) gasoline from him.

    LK

    --
    "Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
  7. Re:Can of worms by nuclear305 · · Score: 4, Funny

    "OK, so now what's going to stop police from hiding GPS units on many cars parked on the street in high crime neighborhoods and tracking thousands of potential suspects?"

    Cost. Technology is expensive. Storing data costs money. Paying staff to process said data is even more expensive. If you're going to start tracking "thousands of potential suspects" in the same neighborhood...GPS is not the way to go, cameras are.

  8. Not a smart guy by AvantLegion · · Score: 1, Funny
    If he's driving a snow plow, there's probably snow. If there's snow, it's cold. If it's cold, there's shrinkage.

    Maybe if he was operating at 100%, the woman would've been impressed instead of repulsed.

  9. This is horrible... by contagious_d · · Score: 3, Funny

    Next thing you know, the police will be planting GPS trackers in houses. I had to say it before someone else said it by accident.

    --
    - /home is where the food is.
  10. Re:Okay, so this changes what again? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    If you find the GPS device, just stick on a (preferably State) police car parked at the local 7-11. Let the tail chase the donkey.

  11. It's in the EULA by n6kuy · · Score: 2, Funny

    What, you just clicked through it without reading it when you signed up for your driver's license?

    --
    If you disagree with me on social issues, then it's pretty clear that you are a narrow-minded bigot.
  12. Re:Strange Double Standard by ray-auch · · Score: 2, Funny

    Surely that makes an argument _for_ the GPS - since he knows where she is, he can avoid being near her and unknowingly violating the order.

  13. Re:GPS jammer by imnoteddy · · Score: 2, Funny
    Not just for the Tin Foil hat crowd. Those who are criminally inclined may find a GPS Jammer handy. Though this does violate FCC regulations. But hey when you committing a crime, does breaking one more law matter?

    If you see a GPS device on your car call the cops and say "Somebody put a bomb on my car!" The reaction should be entertaining.

    --
    No electrons were harmed creating this post, though some may have been subjected to electrical and/or magnetic fields.