Justice Warns Of ‘Big Brother Society’ Where Police Use GPS To Track You Without A Warrant
A Supreme Court justice has warned there could be a strict Big Brother society if the police are allowed to use GPS devices to track suspected criminals without advance approval.
Justice Stephen Breyer said there could be around-the-clock surveillance reminiscent of the totalitarian world of the George Orwell novel 1984.
His comments come as the Obama administration appeals a ruling that threw out a drug conspiracy conviction when the FBI and police installed a GPS device on the suspect’s car without a search warrant.
The Supreme Court is considering whether the devices should require approval from a judge in advance.
In the hearing, Justice Stephen Breyer questioned what a democratic society would look like if people believed the government was tracking them for days at a time.
‘If you win this case, then there is nothing to prevent the police or the government from monitoring 24 hours a day the public movement of every citizen of the United States,’ Breyer said.
‘So if you win, you suddenly produce what sounds like 1984 from their brief.’
A GPS device helped authorities link suspected criminal Antoine Jones, from Washington, to a suburban house used to stash money and drugs.
He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison before the federal appeals court in Washington overturned the conviction.
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