Cell Phone Location Tracking (H 7451, S 2291)

In 2016, the General Assembly approved ACLU-backed legislation requiring law enforcement to obtain a warrant before requesting cell phone location information, except in emergencies dealing with the threat of death or serious physical injury, and requiring you to be notified if your location is tracked. Almost immediately, the Attorney General sought to undermine that law by promoting legislation allowing law enforcement to keep you in the dark - perhaps indefinitely - if your location has been tracked. The Senate approved the legislation in May and the House Judiciary committee followed in June but - in a textbook example of why the ACLU remains at the State House until the very end - the bill was sent back to committee on the last day of the session and never reemerged.