Originally published November 25 2005
Law enforcement now relies on cell phone tracking
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
When the Federal Communications Commission issued a mandate requiring that cell phones give off signals that phone companies can locate with global positioning systems or ground tower triangulation, the consequences for criminals and law enforcement were not fully realized.
Cell phones today are nearly as ubiquitous as a wristwatch --- just about everyone has one.
And while they have certainly made it easier for people to keep in touch, they also have helped police and prosecutors catch criminals.
That was the case last week when Port Chester police determined the whereabouts of a kidnapped 22-year-old Guatemalan woman by sending a homing signal to the cell phone of one of her alleged abductors.
The Federal Communications Commission issued the mandate so that people who dial 911 on their cell phones can be found quickly.
But authorities have used the technology to capture suspects and put defendants at a crime scene --- even if there are no witnesses.
One of the more notable cases came this summer when British authorities captured a London bombings suspect in Italy by tracking his phone.
In Minnesota this year, prosecutors convicted two people of murder in separate cases, despite having no murder weapons and no confessions.
"For a good number of years, law enforcement has been able to use the ability to track and to pinpoint cell-phone use in their efforts to arrest wanted suspects," said Robert McCrie, a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
It's a sophisticated way of trying to avoid detection."
There are stories throughout the country of criminals being exposed through their cell-phone activity.
Last month, police in Austin, Texas, were able to locate a murder suspect in Mexico through his cell phone.
U.S. Magistrate James Orenstein rejected a request by an assistant U.S. Attorney for a court order that would allow federal agents to track a suspect through his cell phone, ruling that the government offered no evidence of actual criminal activity.
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