The First Amendment And Technology - 1681 Words

4th Amendment and Technology Zach Caulum CRMJ 240 Professor Bushong 9/26/2015 Introduction In the twenty-first century there have been many advances in technology which grant us view of more places than we used to be able to see. But with that where do the boundaries lie when using said technology. The history of the Fourth amendment helps to shape how we think about certain issues today, because some of the earlier cases serve as a precedent for the modern fourth amendment cases. There are four different advances in technology that have caused some issues with the rights of the people but also with the rights of the state. These include the use of unmanned vehicles, the use of thermal imaging, the use of GPS surveillance, and how†¦show more content†¦In this case Boyd is being charged by State customs officials for â€Å"fraudulently importing thirty-five cases of plate glass into the port of New York†. (Fuqua, 2014, 6) The police and the government moved to seize the glass as forfeited to the U.S. They also wanted Boyd to produce an invoice on previous sh ipments he had. Boyd argued that the production of his private papers was against the Fourth amendment. The court decided in his favor and said that the search was unconstitutional. In 1961 the exclusionary rule was added to the fourth amendment and could be applied to the states. During the prohibition there was an increase in federal investigations, which also led to an increase in the amount of fourth amendment cases that the Supreme Court would handle. One case was United States v. Lee, where officials shined a spotlight on a boat which then revealed cases of liquor on the deck of the boat. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the officials saying â€Å"Such use of a searchlight is comparable to the use of a marine class or a field glass. It is not prohibited by the constitution.†(Fuqua, 2014, 8) U.S v. Lee was the first time the Supreme Court had ever dealt with a case that dealt with technology and the fourth amendment. The next case that confronted the U.S Supreme Court was Olmstead v. United States. In this case the question was proposed to the supreme court that whether or not the use of evidence from private telephone