10-9-2010 Washington:
A California student was visited first by the FBI and then by the American Civil Liberties Union after reports surfaced that his mechanic had found a GPS tracking device on his car.
After Yasir Afifi discovered the device, a friend posted photos online, prompting “wide speculation about whether the device was real, whether the young Arab-American was being targeted in a terrorism investigation and what the authorities would do,” Wired.com reports on its blog Threat Level. The 20-year-old Arab-American student at Mission College in Santa Clara soon found out, the story says.
Afifi told Wired that FBI agents and police officers came to his apartment and demanded the return of the device. One agent reportedly told Afifi they knew what restaurants he frequented and congratulated him on his new job. Officers also asked about Afifi’s acquaintances and showed him a blog post written by his friend that had “something to do with a mall or a bomb,” Afifi said; the friend later said it was just something stupid he wrote.
After that, Afifi said, he heard from Brian Alseth of the ACLU in Washington state, who reportedly said the ACLU has been waiting for a case like this.
An FBI spokesman contacted by Wired wouldn’t confirm Afifi’s account, citing “an ongoing investigation.” Afifi, whose late father was an Islamic-American community leader, says he he’s done nothing wrong. ..Source.. by Debra Cassens Weiss
Showing posts with label Detection - GPS on Car Hidden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Detection - GPS on Car Hidden. Show all posts
October 9, 2010
Student’s Discovery of GPS Tracking Device Brings Visits by FBI, ACLU
September 28, 2010
Va. court reconsiders police GPS use
While the Virginia court rehears this case, the 9th Circuit has already done so with a similar case. see: USA -v- Juan Pineda-Moreno. This may be the reason why the Virginia court sua sponte decided to rehear their case.9-28-2010 Virginia:
Two weeks after the Virginia Court of Appeals ruled that it was fine for police to use portable global positioning systems to track criminal suspects, the court has now decided to rehear the case, according to an order entered on Thursday.
The court ruled in the case of David L. Foltz Jr., a convicted sex offender whom Fairfax County police suspected might be assaulting women in the Falls Church area. Detectives placed a global positioning system device inside the bumper of his work van, then reviewed his movements and found he had been in the vicinity of a recent assault.
Then police followed him and actually arrested him in the process of attacking another woman.
Foltz was convicted of abduction with intent to defile and given a mandatory life sentence for his second sex-related conviction. His lawyers appealed, challenging the use of the GPS to track Foltz.
Earlier this month, a three-judge panel of Chief Judge Walter S. Felton Jr., and Judges Randolph A. Beales and James W. Haley Jr. found the use of the GPS did not violate Foltz's Fourth Amendment right to privacy.
But on Thursday, the appeals court declared "on its own motion" that the full 11-judge court would now hear the case, and instructed both sides to file briefs.
Foltz's appeal was reinstated, the brief order notes. ..Source.. Tom Jackman
September 7, 2010
Va court upholds police use of GPS attached to sex offender's car
See earlier story. Hummm, so if I find something attached to my car which I did not place there, am I allowed to destroy it, if I so desire? Or, maybe attach it to a roving police car? Better a local wild dog... Enough is enough, this is getting crazy.. Folks need to sweep for bugs nowadays... See also "How to Detect GPS Tracking Devices"9-7-2010 Virginia:
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The Virginia Court of Appeals has upheld the use of a GPS device to track a sex offender's movements.
The court unanimously ruled Tuesday that Fairfax County Police did not violate the privacy rights of David Foltz Jr., a registered sex offender, when they attached the device to the bumper of his work van and tracked him as he drove around.
The GPS log put Foltz near the scene of a sex crime, which prompted police to follow him in person the next day and arrest him during an attempted assault.
The court rejected Foltz's claim that use of the GPS device amounted to an unconstitutional search and seizure and violated his privacy rights. The judges said there is no expectation of privacy on public streets. ..Source.. by ctPost.com
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