Because civil liberties are sooooo 20th century . . .

A Wisconsin judge rules that police may set up hidden surveillance cameras on private property without a warrant:

The judge argued that the secret cameras did not violate the Fourth Amendment -- which protects people and their property from unreasonable search and seizure by authorities -- because neither Manuel Mendoza nor Marco Magana owned or leased the land. Therefore, they could not expect privacy on the property. Plus, the judge said, the Fourth Amendment only extends to a "home and land directly outside of it," according to tech blog Ars Technica.

The property where the cameras were installed is a wooded area distant from homes, with a locked gate and a "no trespassing" sign, which indicated an expectation of privacy, the suspects argued. Griesbach disagreed, saying in his ruling: "Police officers would have to guess before every search whether landowners had erected fences sufficiently high, posted a sufficient number of warning signs, or located contraband in an area sufficiently secluded to establish a right of privacy."

The two guys face life in prison along with $10 million in potential fines for growing marijuana.

Another triumph for the "war on drugs" and the "war on the constitution."

Comments

Anonymous said…

How about we set up one of those cameras at the judge's house? Or the local cop's house? Maybe even the police station. I'll wager they wouldn't like that much

November 3, 2012 at 11:13 AM

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