Court Disqualifies Evidence From Warrantless Cellphone-Tracking Device For The First Time

A federal judge dismissed evidence gathered by a warrantless cellphone-tracking device that locks onto a phone’s location by pretending to be a cell tower for the first time Tuesday.

Manhattan U.S. District Court Judge William Pauley ruled the DEA violated the defendant Raymond Lambis’ privacy rights when it used a phone-tracking device, commonly called a stingray, which spoofs a cell tower signal and latches onto nearby phones searching for service.

As Reuters reported, the agency used the stingray device to locate Lambis’ apartment in Washington Heights — the most likely place his cellphone would be.

Pauley tossed out the DEA’s search, saying in his decision that, “Absent a search warrant, the government may not turn a citizen’s cell phone into a tracking device.”...
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/07/13/3797756/judge-dismisses-stingray-evidence/