When the FBI Comes Calling…®
Domestic Law Enforcement (Title III)
The Fourth Amendment protects citizens from search and seizure by the government without due process of law. Title III of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 establishes the process which domestic law enforcement must follow in order to qualify the due process predicate for searches and seizures. The act requires that law enforcement petition a federal magistrate judge for authorization for such surveillance. In order to grant a warrant for search or seizure, the judge must find that a crime probably (probable cause) has been, is being, or is about to be committed by the individual who is the target of the surveillance and/or property seizure. Once the judge finds that probable cause to believe that the place to be surveilled is likely to be used by the target of the surveillance, law enforcement may execute the search or seizure in accordance with the narrow parameters outlined by the court.
Law enforcement must seek prior judicial authorization only in those times that the target of the surveillance has a reasonable expectation of privacy, as in those activities within the home or on private telephone conversations, among others. If the behavior is deemed public, as in one's location in a public park or what one openly says, then no Title III search warrant is necessary.
For more information regarding some of the specific forms of surveillance, see topics below: