9-0 to Tell The Cops They Can't Do Something? Earth-shaking.

[Minimalist]

http://apnews.excite.com/article/2014062...36f42.html

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a strong defense of digital age privacy, a unanimous Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that police may not generally search the cellphones of people they arrest without first getting search warrants.

Cellphones are powerful devices unlike anything else police may find on someone they arrest, Chief Justice John Roberts said for the court. Because the phones contain so much information, police must get a warrant before looking through them, Roberts said.

"Modern cellphones are not just another technological convenience. With all they contain and all they may reveal, they hold for many Americans the privacies of life," Roberts said.

The message to police about what they should do before rummaging through a cellphone's contents following an arrest is simple. "Get a warrant," Roberts said.

The chief justice acknowledged that barring searches would affect law enforcement, but said: "Privacy comes at a cost."

Somebody check the thermostat in Hell.