Electronic Evidence Flashcards
A defendant placed a cell phone on an outer windowsill and told detectives he did not want anymore. Can this phone be considered abandoned therefore immediately searched.
Yes
Can police immediately search a lost or misplaced cell phone?
Yes, to the extent necessary to determine its owner
Is sending a text to a suspect Phone considered a manipulating it or a search
No
Officers may answer and offenders phone during a _______ or _______ investigation to avoid losing evidence
Drug distribution or sexual enticement
If officers answer the suspects phone to avoid losing evidence and the caller implicates the defendant, what should the officers do?
Record their statements in the police report
Absent exigent circumstances Police may seize a phone only if they have ______ that it contains evidence
Probable cause
How many warrants are needed to seize and search a cell phone?
1
Do cell phone warrant affidavits need a date range for relevant events
Yes they must
__________describes the manner in which technicians limit their inspection to potentially relevant information on phone
Minimization protocol
What type of evidence may be examined beyond seven days?
Electronic evidence, including cell phones
The forensic experts have a _______ period of time beyond seven days to complete their examination of the cell phone
Reasonable
Under article 12, there must be __________ that a defendant can access the device in order to obtain a court order directing him to decrypt computer files. Enter his passcode or apply his finger to a scanner.
Proof beyond a reasonable doubt
If a suspects attorney has their phone, can Police get a subpoena to search the lawyer‘s office?
No, they need to get a warrant to search
What should we do before getting a warrant to search a lawyers office for suspect cell phone?
Consult with prosecutor
The Attorney General, a district attorney or one of their assistants may obtain records from my telephone or computer service company based on:
Reasonable suspicion
If an administrative subpoena for a phone or computer records is filed, the company must deliver the records within ___ days
14
The records obtained by administrative subpoena include (3)
Subscriber name, and address and log of calls
What phone or computer records cannot be accessed based on an administrative subpoena
Content based information,
For example, emails, texts, websites accessed
Program used by Police to directly connect to another users, computer to search and download files
The Roundup Ares program
Is there a bright line rule regarding accessing defendants post on social media?
No
What factors are relevant in evaluating whether police surveillance of social media was a search requiring probable cause and a warrant (2)
1.A users effort to maintain privacy
2. Any attempt by police at deception (creating account posing as a friend or relative vs. making a fake account that suspect accepts friend request from)
Can Police selection of social media targets be motivated by bias?
No
Does a defendant possession of a firearm in a Snapchat video support a search warrant
Yes
Is evidence that a defendants name appears as the author of a post or that post came from defendants account, sufficient proof that the defendant was the author?
No, you need additional “confirming circumstances”
Do recurrent spelling errors typical of a persons texts serve as further confirmation that they wrote the text messages/post
Yes
While police do not need a warrant to view evidence already observed by a private party, they do need a warrant to ______ their search of the device
Expand
When is a search warrant required to review body cam video?
If reviewing it for an unrelated investigation
Does the wiretap statute prohibit police use of body cameras to record a victim statement?
No
Can witnesses and police testify to observations made while viewing a video if the video is later accidentally erased or was not recorded
Yes
Non-targeted surveillance includes:
Cameras that view or record activity in public and private spaces constantly. They are installed by private or public property owners.
Whether police need a warrant for targeted video surveillance depends on (5)
- Duration
- Continuous or intermittent
- Whether it can be monitored live
- If it can gather information in quantities, that would be difficult for a human to do
- Level of visual detail captured
Does 13 days for pole cameras require a search warrant?
Yes
Officers must request a facial recognition search in _____
Writing
Officers need a court order supported by the ________ that a facial recognition search is relevant
Reasonable suspicion
When DONT state police need a court order or written request to search facial recognition
Performing investigatory functions related to the issuance of ID by the RMV
If the written request to the agency performing facial recognition search presents reasonable suspicion of an emergency, officers do not need a court order to (2):
- Identify a dead person
- Prevent a substantial risk of harm to any individual or group.
Is a facial recognition match a positive identification?
No
Can facial recognition matches, be standalone evidence of someone’s connection to a crime
No
Law-enforcement agencies must document each facial recognition search and provide information _____ to the ___________
Quarterly to the executive office of public safety and security (EOPSS)
When law-enforcement agencies record and submit documentation of each facial recognition search, is this information a public record?
No
Is limited use of automated license plate readers a search requiring a warrant
No
Who operates automated license plate readers on the Bourne and Sagamore bridges leading to Cape Cod?
State police
What information does the ALPRs (automated license plate readers) collect?
-Photograph every vehicle plate that crosses the bridge in either direction
-Records the date, time and direction of travel
How long are the automated license plate readers records preserved for?
1 year
If investigators add registration numbers to a hot list on the ALPR system, when will they be notified if that plate crosses the bridge
Live notification
What states that facial recognition match is not a positive identification
State police fraud investigation unit memorandum “applications for facial recognition search court order”
Did the SJC require a warrant for a limited search of Charlie card data
No
The Charlie card is capable of recording ___ months of information
14 months- if history for all 14 months was requested, that would be a search requiring a warrant
What is the recommendation in the future to obtain transit records and videos?
Investigator should obtain a warrant from a judge, unless they have documented exigent circumstances
To acquire historical cell site location information (CSLI) officers must:
Obtain a search warrant
While most people understand that their cell phone provider records the numbers they dial, they usually are not aware that their ______ is also recorded
Location
Can Police request cell site location information from a company instead of getting a search warrant?
No
Are phone companies allowed to voluntarily provide police with cell site location information
Yes but the police may not request it without a warrant
The scope of the cell site location information requested depends on
The crime being investigated
The scope of cell site location information requested should typically be for no more than
2 weeks
What is required to use a cell phone tracker?
Warrant
A StingRay cell site simulator is an example of a:
Cell phone tracker that obtains persons location
A StingRay cell site simulator is an example of a:
Cell phone tracker that obtains persons location
Police can ping a cell phone without a warrant when
There’s an emergency
You can ping a cell phone without a warrant for emergency aid. This rule covers people who are:
At risk for serious injury or death
If police obtain phone records based on exigent circumstances, and the ping leads to an arrest or the seizure of evidence, what should Police do?
Still obtain a warrant to take formal custody of records related to the ping
CSLI stands for:
Cell site location information
CSLI is admissible as a ________ with expert testimony
Business record
If using a cell phone app (ex find my iPhone) to locate a stolen phone, do you need a search warrant or expert testimony?
No. An officer can explain how the app works in court
What is needed to acquire “tower dumps” of CSLI?
Search warrant from a judge
What do “tower dumps” provide to investigators?
CSLI for all phones connected to specific cell towers near the location of a crime at a specific time
A cell tower generates a time stamped record known as
CSLI
The two types of CSLI
Telephone call CSLI
Registration CSLI
The type of CLSI when a person uses their phone to place or receive a call or text
Telephone call CSLI
The type of CSLI that occurs without any action by the user, when cell phones regularly connect to the nearest cell site
Registration CSLI
CSLI is more precise when tower has ______ coverage area and is equipped with advanced technology
Smaller
_______ provides a log of every cell site a particular phone connected to within a given timeframe
Historical CSLI
________ provides investigators with CSLI from every connecting device
Tower dump
_________ is especially useful for investigating serial crimes
Tower dump
Why do tower dumps require a search warrant from a judge?
Because they produce a massive amount of data
The search warrant affidavit for a tower dump, must state that the numbers revealed by CSLI will only be examined if they are linked to more than ____ locations and times were offensive occurred
More than one
A search warrant affidavit for a tower dump must present a protocol to:
Dispose of innocent, third-party information that is obtained
GPS warrant may authorize monitoring for no more than ___ days from the date the warrant is issued
15
Police may renew GPS warrants in additional ___ day increments
15-day
Should police obtain a warrant to install a GPS unit in their informants car, even with the informants consent?
Yes
Police may obtain _______ GPS data from probation without a warrant
Post-conviction
Where is GPS data archived in the probation department?
The departments electronic monitoring system known as ELMO
What is ELMO?
The probation departments electronic monitoring center where GPS data is archived
Police ____ obtain POST conviction, GPS data from probation without a warrant. Police _____ can obtain PRE-trial GPS data from probation without a warrant.
May
Probably
Can evidence obtained by a GPS be used even if it is later found that the judge did not have a legitimate reason to impose the GPS monitoring initially
No. Evidence has to be suppressed
Is it a crime in Massachusetts for a private person to electronically monitor the movements of another person?
No
Electronically monitoring, a citizen secretly may constitute what crime
Criminal harassment
When determining how much publicly available information police can obtain without a warrant they use the ______ analysis
Mosaic
When determining how much publicly available information police can obtain without a warrant they use the ______ analysis
Mosaic
In cases involving ALPR’s, pole cameras, and MBTA records, the issue is whether the data generated became:
Pieces of tile in a mosaic
When accessing public information without a warrant, take the _______ possible to develop probable cause then get a search warrant for more
“Smallest bite”
The wiretap statue was enacted due to the threat to privacy that came from who?
Police and citizens
The wiretap statue outlaws most secret recording by private citizens and insisted on ________ law-enforcement operations
Judicial supervision
There are _____ and ______ prohibitions against unauthorized recording
Civil and criminal
The wiretap law only covers the interception of _____ communication
Oral
Offenders of the wiretap law can get up to ___ years in state prison
5
Nonconsensual interceptions occur when none of the parties in the conversation know they are being recorded. Private citizens are ____ authorized to do this. Law-enforcement officers may only do this with a _______ warrant
Never
Wiretap warrant
_________ interceptions occur when at least one party knows the conversation is recorded and consents to that fact
One party consensual
Most secret recordings fall into what category:
One party consensual
Can private citizens secretly record other people
No
Can a client secretly record their attorney because of the attorney client privilege
No
While a ban on private secret recordings makes sense the constitution does not permit a ban on secret _________ directed at police officers
Information gathering
While a ban on private secret recordings makes sense the constitution does not permit a ban on secret _________ directed at police officers
Information gathering
Can police charge citizens, including media, that secretly record them in the public performance of their duties?
No
The ____ amendment gives citizens the right to document police activities
First amendment
If a person is interfering with a police interaction, should you order them to turn off their cameras?
No, you should give them verbal directions, focusing on the improper behaviors. For example: standing too close
What are the three limits to recording officers in public?
- Interference
- Need for privacy
- Evidence
What is a proper police response to filming police and suspicious circumstances?
Investigative detention
A man was videotaping a police station from a public sidewalk across the street. Two officers approached him and asked if he had ID, but he continued videotaping. The officers then handcuffed him and placed him in the cruiser. Was this reasonable?
The initial questioning and detention was reasonable. The handcuffing and placing him in a cruiser was and unlawful arrest because the officers actions were disproportionate to the potential threat
The wiretap statute prohibits the use of an intercepting device. The definition of a device does not include:
Any phone equipment installed in ordinary course of business
Who may intercept calls prevent violations, such as annoying phone calls?
Phone company investigators
Do phone company investigators need judicial authorization to turn over the results to Police?
No
Booking video does not violate the wiretap statute, even when the prisoner does not know, because booking is a:
Administrative procedure
Can police eavesdrop on a phone call as an investigative tactic if they listen in on an extension phone?
Yes
Police listen in on a conversation on an extension, can they testify about the overheard conversations at trial?
Yes
Who may apply for a wire tap warrant?
Specially designated prosecutors after receiving written authorization from district attorney or Attorney General
Where must they wire tap warrant application be presented?
To a superior court judge in the county where the interception will take place or the applicant is located
For a wiretap warrant, the investigation must involve a:
Designated offense
The designated offenses to get a wiretap warrant include (7):
Violence, gaming, prostitution, judicial, integrity, narcotics, extortion, bribery
To get a wiretap warrant, the affidavit must present ________ that the underlying offense involved _______
Reasonable suspicion
Organized crime
Was one school committee member and an assistant superintendent trying to get a $2000 “kickback” from a fence installer considered organized crime?
No
When getting a wire tap warrant who has the burden to demonstrate while less intrusive methods are inadequate
Law enforcement
Do police have to recruit an informant as attempted method before pursuing a wiretap?
No
A wiretap affidavit must identify the particular _____ and ______ to be monitored
Individuals and phone lines
Can police record unidentified parties having conversations with their named targets about the crimes under investigation?
Yes
Can a wire tap warrant permit the interception of cell phone calls or text messages?
Both
If wiretap was granted for a loanshark investigation, but the intercepted conversations discussed drug dealing as well. What should the prosecutor do?
Petition the court to expand the investigation to broader coverage
Can a wiretap warrant authorize secret entry to install the listening device
Yes
The wiretap warrant must be executed within 30 days of:
Equipment installation
The actual listening time in a wiretap warrant is limited to ____ consecutive days within the 30 day period
15 consecutive days
When must surveillance tapes be returned to court for a wire to warrant
Within seven days after the warrant ends
Can a prosecutor present recordings from a wire tap warrant to the grand jury before judicial review
Yes
Surveillance tapes for a wire tap warrant must be returned to
The judge that issued the warrant
An attested copy of the wiretap warrant must be served on the targets and the
Phone line subscribers
If a wiretap warrant alleges “exigent circumstances”, the warrant must be served within:
30 days after it expires
If a wiretap warrant affiant alleges “important special facts concerning the need for secrecy”, the warrant service must occur within
Three years of its expiration
_______ notes the numbers dialed for a particular phone
Pen register
_______ notes incoming calls
Cross frame trap
What is required to get a pen register or cross trap?
Wiretap warrant
If Police already have a wire tap warrant in place do they need separate authorization to use pen registers or cross traps?
No
Can a judge order that a phone company help install devices needed in a wire tap warrant?
Yes
The federal wiretap law only applies to the interception of voices. Therefore, pen registers and cross traps may be installed without a warrant. The devices are authorized for a maximum of
60 days with the possibility of a 60 day extension
When is a warrantless interception of oral communications authorized? (4)
- Under supervision of police
- Investigating a designated defense
- One person in the conversation consents
- Reasonable suspicion of organized crime
Does the requirement of investigative necessity come in to play during warrantless one party consent recordings?
No
When police want to record in a suspects home, they must obtain a
Blood warrant
A blood war is different because instead of seizing tangible evidence, it authorizes the collection of
Oral communication
Does federal law still permit consensual recording in a home without a warrant?
Yes but not Massachusetts law
4 exceptions to the blood warrant
- Federal investigation
- Officer safety
- Outside suspect dwelling
- Exigent circumstances
When local officers participate in a federally run investigation, does the blood warrant standard apply?
No
If state involvement in a federal investigation creates at least a “combined enterprise”, participating federal officers are held to the Massachusetts standard blood warrant if
The case ends up in state court
Can police officers acting in an undercover capacity wear a wire for safety without a blood warrant
Yes, but the recorded interceptions may not be used as evidence unless police followed the relevant legal procedures
If there is no organized crime suspected, can an undercover officer still wear a wire for safety
Yes
Is blood warrant needed in vehicles
No
His blood warrant necessary in a jail cell
No
Regarding a blood warrant does a suspect have an expectation of privacy in an associates dwelling
They might
Was a blood warrant necessary to videotape a drug transaction in a motel room where the defendant had been invited
No
What happens to recordings that were unlawfully created by government officials or their agents?
Suppressed
Can an individual who listens to an unlawful recording either while it’s made or later testify about it
No
Who can testify about unlawfully recorded conversations?
Anyone personally involved in the recorded conversation
If a secret recording of an undercover drug deal is suppressed because it’s a violation of blood, can the undercover agent still testify?
Yes
