US courts confront GPS surveillance: isMaynarda harbinger of change or an anomaly?

This article examines legal developments in the United States, pertaining to the use of GPS tracking by the police for investigative purposes. Central to the issue of the use of GPS technologies by law enforcement agencies in the United States is the prohibition against ‘unreasonable searches and seizures’ provided by the Fourth Amendment of the United States constitution. Notably, a recent decision from the federal circuit for the District of Columbia, United States v. Maynard, has introduced a potentially new approach to Fourth Amendment questions upon being presented with the issue of GPS surveillance. Drawing on US jurisprudence, the article explores the privacy and regulatory issues surrounding the use of locational tracking on the part of law enforcement and suggests considerations for the definition of limits on the use of GPS surveillance, both with respect to warrants and statutory regulation of surveillance powers.