Law enforcement officers won't need a search warrant or probable cause, but they will have to get a grand jury subpoena with some type of judicial oversight, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled
TRENTON -- Police officers in New Jersey will now have an easier time getting the telephone records of suspects of investigations after the state's highest court said they no longer need a search warrant to obtain that information.
Investigators used to have to show probable cause and get a search warrant from a judge for a suspect's detailed telephone records, but now they need only show that those records are relevant to an investigation and can seek that information through a judge's order, the New Jersey Supreme Court said it its divided opinion on Monday.
The 4-2 decision ends the 34-year-old practice of obtaining a search warrant for telephone billing records and puts New Jersey more in line with federal wiretapping laws, the high court noted.
It said there would still need to be some type of judicial review or hearing to obtain the court order under the state's wiretap act. Investigators would have to show that the information sought is relevant to an ongoing criminal investigation and would have to cover a finite period.
The court said that while it recognizes the importance of protecting the privacy of citizens, it was also trying to make New Jersey's search and seizure and wiretapping practices more consistent.
For instance, information from bank records, utility bills and internet service providers is obtained through a grand jury subpoena even though some of that information has the potential for revealing more than telephone records do, the court said.
The court, however, noted that tracking a person using the location of his or her cell phone would still require a search warrant and probable cause because of the potential for the invasion of privacy that practice would pose.
"When the court's decisions in the area of privacy rights are read together, they reveal internal consistencies. We now attempt to resolve that tension in the law," Chief Justice Stuart Rabner wrote for the majority.
State Attorney General Christopher Porrino, whose office handled the case that spawned the decision, hailed the ruling as another tool for law enforcement officers to fight crime.
"This is an important win for law enforcement and public safety across New Jersey. Anybody who has practiced criminal law understands the investigative significance of phone billing records, and the importance of being able to obtain them expeditiously while at the same time preserving the constitutional rights of subjects," Porrino said in a statement issued Monday. "(The) ruling revises long-standing precedent in this state, and brings New Jersey more in line with federal law and the vast majority of state jurisdictions."
The state Legislature amended New Jersey's wiretapping laws to allow investigators to obtain telephone records with a grand jury subpoena and by showing relevancy to an investigation rather than the higher standard of probable cause. However, that law was not generally followed because it conflicted with the 1982 court ruling that put the higher standard into effect.
The decision grew out of the case of Asbury Park resident Gary Lunsford, who sought to quash evidence gathered from his cell phone records obtained from a grand jury subpoena during an investigation into drug dealing.
MaryAnn Spoto may be reached at mspoto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaryAnnSpoto. Find NJ.com on Facebook.