Riley v. California: A Pyrrhic Victory for Privacy Rights?

Abstract

In Riley v. California, the United States Supreme Court ushered privacy protections into the digital era and signaled that the Fourth Amendment would not become a constitutional afterthought. The Court unanimously held that, absent exigent circumstances, law enforcement officers could not search any area of an arrestee’s cell phone, including the outgoing call log, without a warrant and probable cause. At first glance, Riley appears to be a landmark decision in favor of individual privacy rights. As with most things, however, the devil is in the details, and the details in Riley make any celebration over the seemingly enhanced protections for privacy rights premature.

Keywords: Riley v. California, Fourth Amendment, Smith v. Maryland, Third-Party Doctrine, United States v. Miller, NSA Metadata Collection

JEL Classification: K40, K23