US Supreme Court Rules Unanimously That Cell Phone Searches Require A Warrant

Business Insider

The Supreme Court unanimously ruled Wednesday that police generally may not search cell phones of arrested individuals without first obtaining a search warrant.

Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the opinion of the court. Roberts wrote that cell phones are powerful tools that are able to store a "digital record of nearly every aspect" of people's lives. Consequently, they are different from almost anything police find on a person upon arrest.

"It is no exaggeration to say that many of the more than 90% of American adults who own a cell phone keep on their person a digital record of nearly every aspect of their lives - from the mundane to the intimate," Roberts wrote.

SCOTUSblog called the decision a "sweeping endorsement of digital privacy."

Roberts concluded his opinion by offering police a simple solution to searching a cell phone after an arrest.

"Get a warrant," Roberts wrote.