Government Denied Warrant To Obtain Device IDs From Google In Theft Investigation

(August 25, 2020, 9:59 PM EDT) -- CHICAGO — A warrant application by the government for a "geofence" to identify devices in the proximity of crimes being investigated did not meet the probable cause and particularity requirements of the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, an Illinois federal magistrate judge found in a ruling that was unsealed Aug. 24, finding that the proposed warrant would give the government too much discretion to obtain the device and personal information of passersby unrelated to the crimes (In re Search of Information Stored at Premises Controlled by Google, No. 20-mc-392, N.D. Ill., 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 152712)....