Greg Zeman
The "stingray" is a
surveillance device that mimics a cell tower and can be used to track a
person's location or access data on their cellular device. Several California
police agencies are utilizing the technology, but how they obtained it or what
they are using it for is, at best, shadowy.
According to documents
uncovered by the ACLU, the technology was procured under the pretense of
combatting terrorism. But now "mission creep" has led to it being
used for routine policing.
[Some agencies] have used its
stingray(s) for ordinary law enforcement purposes, such as investigating guns,
drugs, and gangs. While these are legitimate law enforcement purposes, they
don't justify suspending the Fourth Amendment or bypassing ordinary democratic
processes.
How the departments acquired
the technology is uncertain, and the ACLU says there is scant evidence in the
heavily redacted invoices provided by law enforcement.
The [Oakland Police Department]
unit that used the stingray, the Criminal Investigation Division, focuses its
investigative resources on guns, drugs, and gangs. OPD produced a lone invoice
pertaining to the stingray - " $13,425 spent in 2009 for "Maintenance
Services." How it acquired the device remains a mystery.
The report sees the legal grey
area around stingrays as part of a larger "disturbing trend" and urge
official regulations for the use of such powerful tools, saying that "as
with too many other surveillance devices, law enforcement is writing its own
guidelines."
The following agencies already
have stingray technology or have applied for grant funding to purchase it:
• Alameda County District Attorney's Office
• Fremont Police Department
• Los Angeles Police Department
• Los Angeles Sheriff's Department
• Oakland Police Department
• Sacramento Sheriff's Department
• San Diego Police Department
• San Francisco Police Department
• San Jose Police Department
