Give me Privacy or Give me Death! - An Investigation into the Intent Behind the Language of the 4th Amendment

Abstract or Introduction

Every day, people across America readily surrender both significant and
inconsequential information concerning their personal lives. That fragmented
information is available to the public and can be collected, compiled, or dispersed at
will by anybody who seeks it. By providing our private information to others, we
strip ourselves of our own privacy. With every careless disclosure, we essentially
forfeit a little more of our privacy, leaving us vulnerable to potentially invasive
Governmental surveillance. Over time, our own perspective concerning the value of
our privacy gradually diminishes, which can be reflected by subsequent judicial
decision. If we are not careful, society’s disposition in general can progressively set a
detrimental trend for potential future judicial decisions.
Just as history has demonstrated, the general attitude toward our right of
privacy might continue to evolve as time progresses. The more we surrender our
privacy, the easier it is to lose and the harder it will be to get them back once we
realize that things have gone too far.
Justice Sotomayor’s concurring opinion in U.S. v. Jones illustrates that; “GPS
monitoring generates a precise, comprehensive, record of a person’s public
movements that reflects a wealth of detailed (information) about her familial,
political, professional, religious and sexual associations.”
Potentially abusive law enforcement practices relating to certain traditional
surveillance technics were once overly burdensome, costly, and inconvenient. This
former excessively cumbersome process would ordinarily safeguard the privacy of
potential suspects but is now inexpensive and uncomplicated. From Online shopping
to surveillance cameras or GPS navigation units, we are constantly being monitored,
surveyed, and tracked. Successively emerging technological advances allow others,
including our nation’s government, to monitor our every move.