Also known as: justified expectation of privacy · justified expectations of privacy · reasonable expectation of privacy
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A subjective expectation of privacy that society is prepared to recognize as reasonable. Government action that violates such an expectation constitutes a search under the Fourth Amendment.
Justin Jarvis places several bags of household refuse at the curb in front of his home for scheduled pickup. Officers collect and open the bags without a warrant, discovering evidence of illegal activity. Because the bags were left outside the home's curtilage for collection, Jarvis has no justified expectation of privacy in their contents.
Joy Jiang's wireless carrier maintains months of historical cell-site location information showing her phone's movements. Federal agents obtain the records through a court order rather than a warrant. Jiang retains a justified expectation of privacy in the long-term location data even though the carrier holds the records.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
John Jones stays overnight as a guest in Jorge Juarez's apartment. Officers enter and search the apartment without a warrant while Jones is present. Jones possesses a justified expectation of privacy in the premises sufficient to challenge the search.
Jessica Jacobs places a telephone call from a public phone booth. Officers listen to the conversation by attaching a device to the exterior of the booth without a warrant. Jacobs exhibits a justified expectation of privacy in the contents of the call despite its public location.
Judy Jacobs dials a series of numbers from her home telephone. Police obtain a list of the dialed numbers from the telephone company without a warrant. Jacobs has no justified expectation of privacy in the numbers because she voluntarily conveyed them to a third party.
Jackson Mutual employees discover a body inside a company apartment. Officers conduct an extensive warrantless search of the premises hours later. The occupants retain a justified expectation of privacy in the apartment that requires a warrant or recognized exception before a full search may proceed.
A person must first exhibit an actual subjective expectation of privacy. That expectation must then be one that society is prepared to recognize as reasonable.
An overnight guest generally possesses a justified expectation of privacy in the host's home and may challenge a search of the premises.
No justified expectation of privacy exists in garbage left for collection outside the curtilage of a home.
Individuals retain a justified expectation of privacy in historical cell-site location information even when the records are maintained by third-party providers.
A person present in another's apartment solely for a brief commercial transaction without staying overnight generally lacks a justified expectation of privacy in the premises.
…(a) that an enclosed telephone booth is an area where, like a home and unlike a field, a person has a constitutionally protected reasonable expectation of privacy; (b) that electronic as well as physical intrusion into a place that is in this sense private may constitute a violation of the Fourth Amendment; and (c) that the invasion of a…