A tremendous initiative by a paper in Oregon: Local law enforcement officers grabbed the curbside trash of a suspect they were investigating — without a warrant or any judicial oversight. Some people — notably the editor of the local paper — thought that was wrong. So reporters from that paper went out and swiped the trash of the mayor, the police chief, and the local district attorney. Here's some excerpts from the story:
The news left a lot of Portlanders–including us–scratching our heads. Aren't there rules about this sort of thing? Aren't citizens protected from unreasonable search and seizure by the Fourth Amendment?
The Multnomah County District Attorney's Office doesn't think so. Prosecutor Mark McDonnell says that once you set your garbage out on the curb, it becomes public property.
“[The suspect] placed her garbage can out in the open, open to public view, in the public right of way,” McDonnell told Judge Jean Kerr Maurer earlier this month. “There were no signs on the garbage, 'Do not open. Do not trespass.' There was every indication…she had relinquished her privacy, possessory interest.”
Police Chief Mark Kroeker echoed this reasoning. “Most judges have the opinion that [once] trash is put out…it's trash, and abandoned in terms of privacy,” he [said].
In fact, it turns out that police officers throughout Oregon have been rummaging through people's trash for more than three decades. Portland drug cops conduct “garbage pulls” once or twice per month, says narcotics Sgt. Eric Schober.
[…snipped…]
After much debate, we resolved to turn the tables on three of our esteemed public officials. We embarked on an unauthorized sightseeing tour of their garbage, to make a point about how invasive a “garbage pull” really is–and to highlight the government's ongoing erosion of people's privacy.
[…snipped…]
After much debate, we resolved to turn the tables on three of our esteemed public officials. We embarked on an unauthorized sightseeing tour of their garbage, to make a point about how invasive a “garbage pull” really is–and to highlight the government's ongoing erosion of people's privacy.
Each, in his or her own way, has endorsed the notion that you abandon your privacy when you set your trash out on the curb. So we figured they wouldn't mind too much if we took a peek at theirs.
Boy, were we wrong . . .
[Read the full story]