Minnesota Google Keyword Warrant Part of National Privacy Debate

Google's “keyword warrant” in Minnesota now part of national privacy debate

A deadly hit-and-run driver, an arsonist who killed a family of five, and a serial rapist.

Police in three states, including Minnesota, have investigated these crimes using an increasingly controversial tactic: trying to identify people who used Google to search for specific keywords related to these cases.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is currently considering whether so-called inverse warrants issued against Google violate the Constitution.

A similar warrant has been filed in the unsolved death of Dr. Cathy Donovan in Mille Lacs County, first discovered by 5 INVESTIGATES, and is now attracting the attention of digital privacy advocates nationwide.

“This particular case stands out as an example of the massive generation of irrelevant and unproductive information by Google,” said Andrew Crocker of the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Earlier this year, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) obtained a warrant ordering Google to turn over the Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of anyone who searched for the keywords “Mille Lacs hit and run” or “Highway 169 hit and run” over a four-day period.

It's easy to imagine that many people will be interested in what's happening in their area, seek out information about it and get caught up in it, Crocker said.

Court challenge

A BCA spokesman said last month that such warrants can help identify witnesses and eliminate suspects, but so far authorities have not announced any suspects or arrests in the hit-and-run that killed Donovan.

Similar reverse keyword search warrants helped investigators in Pennsylvania track down a suspect who raped and kidnapped several women between 2012 and 2017.

Authorities identified suspect John Kurtz after executing a warrant from Google requesting search records of the victims' names and home addresses.

Kurtz later pleaded guilty and a jury convicted him, but now the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether the counter warrant used by police violated the constitutional provision requiring probable cause.

“In some ways I really understand and empathize with what law enforcement is doing. They're investigating cases where there aren't a lot of traditional leads,” Crocker said, “but they also have to respect the Constitution. If we allow this type of investigative technique in a very high-profile, tragic case, then we're saying it can be used in any way, in any case.”

Warnings from law enforcement experts

The use of counter warrants against Google in Pennsylvania, Minnesota and other states has also drawn the attention of JP Nixon, a former police officer and prosecutor who is now a law enforcement consultant.

“I think they're invaluable tools because, in some cases, they provide us with information that we wouldn't have access to otherwise,” Nixon said. “Unfortunately, I'm concerned that the reason they're invaluable tools to us is because they circumvent certain requirements of the Fourth Amendment.”

Nixon and others say the Minnesota hit-and-run investigation stands out because the conditions of the reverse warrant are so broad.

It's unclear how much personal information was gleaned from people searching for basic details about the case.

The question is, what if the government decides it wants to use these devices for other purposes? Nixon said: “Obviously, these devices could be used for a variety of purposes, to spy on somebody.”

The BCA says it rarely uses reverse keyword search warrants to identify criminal suspects.

Looking to the future

Last year, the Colorado Supreme Court upheld the use of reverse keyword search warrants used to identify a suspect in an arson attack that killed a family of five, including two children.

Denver police obtained a warrant to require Google to provide IP addresses connected to any devices used to search the family's home address in the roughly two weeks before the fire.

The decision upholding the warrant marks the first time the court has considered the constitutionality of reverse keyword searches, but the ruling only applies to such warrants in Colorado.

Law enforcement and digital privacy experts alike predict more challenges lie ahead, with another high-profile case potentially reaching the U.S. Supreme Court in the future.

“I want to arrest these people and I intend to do so as long as I believe I can do so within the bounds of the law,” Nixon said. “My point is, I'm not necessarily convinced that the courts will ultimately uphold these searches.”

Investigators are asking for the public's help in identifying the driver involved in the hit-and-run death of Dr. Cathy Donovan. State Police ask that anyone with information contact Sergeant Jason Brown at 218-316-3026 or [email protected].

Related Articles: 5 Investigates Dr. Cathy Donovan Eric Rasmussen Mille Lacs County

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