Electronic Warrantless Seizures-The Founders Would Shudder

Most of this reading is a cure for insomnia. Most gov't documents are, but that may be by design. It discourages research.
I come pre-discouraged (and pre-deranged), so this doesn't have any effect on me. I read every word.
Courtesy of, well, our tax dollars, or the US Cybercrime Division.

Searching and Seizing Computers and Obtaining Electronic Evidence in Criminal Investigations
Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section
Criminal Division
United States Department of Justice
July 2002

The first of many empty paragraphs referring to Congressional review. I'm sure it met the Al Gonzales giggle test.

[...]
Many of the provisions of the PATRIOT Act relevant here would, unless reenacted into law, sunset on December 31, 2005. Accordingly, prosecutors and agents are urged to inform the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), at 202-514-1026, whenever use of the new authorities proves helpful in a criminal case. This information will help ensure that Congress is fully informed when deciding whether to reenact these provision.
[...]

Wanna have fun, call that number.
I bet ten bucks Mettle is the first with balls enough to try it.

To answer the old Lady in the Wendy's commercial, "Here's the beef."

I. SEARCHING AND SEIZING COMPUTERS WITHOUT A WARRANT

A. Introduction
The Fourth Amendment limits the ability of government agents to search for evidence without a warrant. This chapter explains the constitutional limits of warrantless searches in cases involving computers.

The Fourth Amendment states:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

I'm surprised they bothered with this reference to the amendment.

According to the Supreme Court, a warrantless search does not violate the Fourth Amendment if one of two conditions is satisfied. First, if the government's conduct does not violate a person's "reasonable expectation of privacy," then formally it does not constitute a Fourth Amendment "search" and no warrant is required. See Illinois v. Andreas, 463 U.S. 765, 771 (1983). Second, a warrantless search that violates a person's reasonable expectation of privacy will nonetheless be "reasonable" (and therefore constitutional) if it falls within an established exception to the warrant requirement. See Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177, 185 (1990). Accordingly, investigators must consider two issues when asking whether a government search of a computer requires a warrant.(emphasis added) First, does the search violate a reasonable expectation of privacy? And if so, is the search nonetheless reasonable because it falls within an exception to the warrant requirement?

The last to conditions have been removed from consideration via more recent legislation, executive order, and trial precedent. Basically, once an agent decides to seize your computer without a warrant, he does it.
Maybe you gave his kid a bad grade in math class. Maybe his boss just tells him to do it. Maybe he thinks the local used book shop owner is a pervert. Maybe his pastor says no stone should be unturned when fighting sin.
Point is, since '02, they could take your computer and enter all of it's files without a warrant and the investigating agent or agency could make the call as to whether or not it is legal.
The Founding Fathers would go to Boston Harbor, board a container ship from China, and dump all the PCs and Laptops overboard.
"The Great Boston PC Party"? Sorry.
As ProfMarcus recently posted, many of us have used our computers as the filing cabinets of all our personal and professional information. Losing it would be devastating to many of us.
New 4th Amendment, July 2002
The right of the people to be insecure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated by any oversight, and no Warrants shall be issued, regardless of probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation of the investigating officer, and not particularly describing the place to be searched, or the persons or things to be seized.

I feel so......safe.

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