()

In 2014’s Riley v California, the United States Supreme Court ruled that law enforcement organizations required warrants to search the digital contents of smartphones found on a person at the time of arrest. Now a new debate about the privacy standards surrounding smartphones may be heating up, with a ruling made by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court Of Appeals on May 5 that gives the police authorization to use GPS signals to track the location of criminal suspects.

The discussion stems from the prosecution of Quartavius Davis, who was indicted on seven separate charges of armed robberies that occurred in the span of two months. During trial a number of eyewitnesses placed Davis at the scene of the crime alongside his codefendants, all of whom plead guilty. While Davis was eventually convicted of the charges, the issue arose out of cellphone records that were submitted as evidence, which allowed the law enforcement officials to track Davis’ location. Davis appealed the conviction saying that his Fourth Amendment Rights were violated as a result of his being tracked.