This is not great news, even if the law pretty much aligns with case law. Nonetheless, this is concerning. Tennessee law enforcement agencies will continue to be able to use drones without a search…
So, basically, the very rough standard has been that if what you do can be readily seen by the general public, then it’s not considered private, and police don’t need a warrant to search it. What we don’t know is whether SCOTUS is going to consider that public use of drones basically expands that public space to looking right at your private property at low altitude. We know that in past case law:
Stuff visible to people looking out of an airplane has been considered accessible to the public view.
Drones are also a lot lower and more maneuverable however, so they can see more.
The question is more-or-less whether public use of drones makes people’s backyards visible by drones “public space” and thus accessible to police without a warrant.
The specific issue of drones has not yet been addressed by SCOTUS.
So, basically, the very rough standard has been that if what you do can be readily seen by the general public, then it’s not considered private, and police don’t need a warrant to search it. What we don’t know is whether SCOTUS is going to consider that public use of drones basically expands that public space to looking right at your private property at low altitude. We know that in past case law:
Stuff visible to people looking out of an airplane has been considered accessible to the public view.
Drones are also a lot lower and more maneuverable however, so they can see more.
The question is more-or-less whether public use of drones makes people’s backyards visible by drones “public space” and thus accessible to police without a warrant.
The specific issue of drones has not yet been addressed by SCOTUS.