In the event of a car accident should police be able to check your cellphone for activity (but not the content) leading up to the incident?

Poll - Total Votes: 14

Yes

You can only vote on one answer.

[b]Not looking at what you said or photos you took but just checking to see if the phone was used leading to the accident.[/b]

No different than a breathalyzer as far as i'm concerned.

Feel free to explain your reasoning.

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REMsleep · 41-45, F

Maybe with a search warrant depending on severity of accident/potential criminal accountability.
In most cases for basic traffic accidents checking the phone isn't needed.
It is often clear who is at fault and it dosent matter if they were picking their nose or texting. They are in the wrong.
So my basic response is No

Pikachu

@REMsleep

Well i'm thinking in the same circumstances where they would issue a breathalyzer test. You don't need a warrant for that.

REMsleep · 41-45, F

@Pikachu Breathalyzers can be legally refused although there may be consequences.
Because driving is a privilege and not a right of citizenship there is implied consent that if officers and witnesses see you behaving erratically behind the wheel that you will allow the BAC test if suspected.
It could certainly be argued but would be a harder sell that you and your electronic devices could be searched if an officer or a witness views you using it while operating the vehicle just prior to an accident but I don't think that its quite the same thing.
No additional info is garnered from the BAC test besides if you are driving the vehicle over or under the legal limit, not so with searching the phone for time stamps.
Also exact times of the accident by the minute can rarely be proven anyway unless its caught on tape.

Pikachu

@REMsleep

[quote]Breathalyzers can be legally refused although there may be consequences.[/quote]

Sure. And it would be the same here.

The technology exists to check a phone's activity without the officer seeing the content of that activity.

So what's the difference?

REMsleep · 41-45, F

@Pikachu I mean as long as it can legally be refused I guess I don't have any major problem with it but at the end of the day any technology that accesses your device to mine data has the ability to detail other info also turning over my phone to " the police" for a potential detail free search means that I have confidence in the officers to be trustand I personally don't

Pikachu

@REMsleep

Well i'm sure there would be rules in place to control what police can and cannot do in that area. Maybe they'd have to do it in front of you so that you can see they're not checking content.