Anibowei v. Blanche (Amicus Brief)
Summary
What this Case is About
Federal appeals courts disagree sharply on when border agents may search travelers’ phones. The Fourth and Ninth Circuits require reasonable suspicion for forensic searches, while the Fifth Circuit, which decided Anibowei’s case, allows searches with no individualized suspicion at all. The rules a traveler faces depend on where they land.
On behalf of journalist Max Blumenthal, whose phones CBP seized at Dulles, ADC filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to take up Anibowei v. Blanche and set one national standard for searches of travelers’ electronic devices. The brief explains that the patchwork of rulings, together with CBP’s own expansive directive, leaves travelers facing a chaotic and unpredictable situation at the border.
Case Files
Documents, press & coverage
Court documents
Court filings, most recent first.
Press Releases
ADC statements on the case, most recent first.
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