Can Idaho police legally search your phone during a traffic stop? Here’s what the law says

Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — When a law enforcement officer pulls you over for a traffic stop in Idaho, are you legally required to give them your mobile phone if they ask?

Here’s what to know about the laws in Idaho:

The Fourth Amendment protects people from unreasonable searches by government officials, including police officers. But there is still a caveat:

“The Fourth Amendment, however,” according to U.S. government , “is not a guarantee against all searches and seizures, but only those that are deemed unreasonable under the law.”

Yet, up until a Supreme Court case in 2014, it was still unclear whether the Fourth Amendment protected your digital content. Riley v. California, which concerned officers searching a suspect’s phone without a warrant and submitting that evidence to court, ultimately found that police infringed upon Riley’s Fourth Amendment right.

Police must have a search warrant that specifies the need to search for information on a telephone or other electronic device before they can search your phone.

If the judge does issue a warrant, it has to precisely detail which devices can be searched and what information the police are looking for.

However, there are a few instances where police can search your phone without a warrant: exigent circumstances. These are instances where police can conduct a warrantless search based on reasonable determinations, such as when there is a need to prevent the destruction of evidence or a threat to public safety.

Although there have been no cases in Idaho involving a warrantless mobile phone search, the state has had multiple cases in which exigent circumstances were used to conduct a search.

In Idaho v. Carlos Blancos, Jesus Jan Carlos Blancos had his blood drawn without a warrant by hospital staff against his will under the instruction of an Idaho State Police sergeant, who suspected Carlos Blancos of driving under the influence.

The court held that the warrantless blood draw violated Carlos Blancos’ Fourth Amendment rights because the state failed to prove there was insufficient time to obtain a warrant, therefore throwing the evidence out.

Of course, a police officer can also search your phone without a warrant if you consent to them conducting the search.

If the police search your phone without a search warrant or qualifying exigent circumstances, you can file a motion to get the evidence dismissed in court.

The judge can decide to toss out any evidence and information gathered from an illegal search.