The full records are available here. The results should be troubling for anyone who cares about privacy rights, judicial oversight of police activities, and the rule of law. The documents paint a detailed picture of police using an invasive technology β one that can follow you inside your house β in many hundreds of cases and almost entirely in secret.
The secrecy is not just from the public, but often from judges who are supposed to ensure that police are not abusing their authority. Though the version of the sharing agreement released by the FDLE is partially redacted, a local police department near Tampa provided an unredacted copy. In a May email, the FDLE identified a staggering 1, uses of cell site simulator equipment, likely reflecting deployment in both state and local investigations throughout Florida.
Although law enforcement agencies often justify their purchase of Stingraysβand the excessive secrecy surrounding their use β on homeland security grounds , the Tallahassee list reveals not a single national security-related investigation.
The list also shows that the TPD allowed other police departments to access Stingrays, even crossing state lines into Georgia on at least five occasions. In many of the investigations, police never sought a court order authorizing Stingray use. In others, they sought a court order on a low "relevance" standard, but not a warrant based on probable cause.
Perhaps most troublingly, the records indicate a pattern of excessive secrecy, including concealment of information that should appear in investigative files and court filings.
