Tag Archives: privacy

Home addresses that are part of public records can be disclosed to the public via open records requests, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled last week. The court upheld a 2012 lower court decision that stated “there is no constitutional right to privacy in one’s home address under the Pennsylvania Constitution.” Most state laws specifically exempt home addresses from records requests, as does the federal Freedom of Information Act. The Pennsylvania ruling is in response to a lawsuit filed by Mel M. Marin, who wanted …

In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court Monday ruled that an alert by a trained drug-sniffing dog constitutes probable cause for a police search under most circumstances. In Florida v. Harris, the court rejected the notion that law enforcement would have to produce a detailed record of a dog’s reliability in order for its detection process to stand up in court, deciding that simple proof of training was enough. “If a bona fide organization has certified a dog after testing …

Did you think flying robots were only creatures of science fiction movies? Silly you. Your neighbor can buy one from any number of dealers and online sources, and next thing you know, cameras could be flying over your backyard. Drones – remotely controlled devices that have been made famous by the military’s use of unmanned aerial vehicles – are now appealing to the civilian population and the police, raising concerns with privacy groups.   Drone On You can buy a …

  Did you know that the government can know your whereabouts by tracking your cell phone? Most police don’t even bother to get a search warrant. Your cell phone carrier will simply voluntarily turn over the information. Lawyers.com Editor-in-Chief Larry Bodine reports on how you can protect your privacy that’s surrendered by big phone companies. This privacy breach doesn’t involve just criminals but also law abiding citizens. In 2011, phone carriers responded to more than one million demands by law …

The U.S. Supreme Court will decide if it will hear arguments on whether a town’s use of personal identifying information on parking tickets is in violation of federal law. The justices considered the case of Village of Palatine v. Senne in January and are expected to announce soon if they will take it for review. At stake is whether towns can issue parking tickets that include the violator’s name, address and other personal information. The dispute began when Illinois resident …