Court Rebuffs Obama on Warrantless Cell-Site Tracking

So, basically, obama and his gang of thugs don't need a warrant to get information on your cell phone usage or email, they are above the law. You can bet they want to use this information to keep track of those they consider enemies, maybe even political rivals. They do not need this sort of access, especially without going through the proper procedures. This is the sort of activity that "leaders" like castro, chavez and saddam hussein engage in. Does this tell you the direction this administration is forcing our Country to go? If this doesn't make you mad, you might need to see a doctor...

Thanks to Marc Cote for the heads up on this story.

By David Kravets - Wired

A federal appeals court on Wednesday rejected the Obama administration’s contention that the government is never required to get a court warrant to obtain cell-site information that mobile-phone carriers retain on their customers.

The decision by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is one in a string of court decisions boosting Americans’ privacy in the digital age — rulings the government fought against. The most significant and recent decision came Tuesday, when a different federal appeals court said for the first time the government must obtain a court warrant for an internet service provider to grant the authorities access to a suspect’s e-mail.

The case that concluded Wednesday concerns historical cell-site location information, which carriers usually retain for about 18 months. The data identifies the cell tower the customer was connected to at the beginning of a call and at the end of the call — and is often used in criminal prosecutions and investigations.

“Prosecutors across the country use the statute in criminal investigations to obtain a wide range of evidence,”  the administration told the Philadelphia-based 3rd Circuit.

The Stored Communications Act, the appeals court ruled in September, granted judges the discretion to require a warrant under the Fourth Amendment for the government to obtain the cell-site information. It was the first appellate court to reach that conclusion, despite a handful of lower-court decisions freeing the government from that requirement.

The Obama administration urged the appellate court to reconsider its position, an offer the court declined Wednesday without commenting on the merits.

The administration has also asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to reverse its August ruling requiring court warrants to affix GPS devices to vehicles to track their every move. The administration said Americans should expect no privacy “in the totality of his or her movements in public places.”

The appellate court’s answer is pending.