Cellphone Ruling Could Alter Police Methods, Experts Say

The Supreme Court decision making it harder for the police to search cellphones without a warrant could change procedures around the country, police officials and legal experts said.

In an opinion hailed as a major advance for personal privacy in the digital age, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote that cellphones are tiny computers that can be said to contain “the privacies of life.” And so the opinion concluded that the message for police in most cases is simple: “get a warrant.” That requirement, however, could hinder law enforcement, said Yousry Zakhary, president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. “I wish it was just as simple as ‘get a warrant’ ” to comply with the law, he said. “It takes time -- and key evidence could be lost.” His organization filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court, asking that the authority to search cellphones after an arrest be preserved. He said the decision was disappointing.