Court Sets New Rules for Computer Searches

Court Sets New Rules for Computer Searches: "In a ruling with broad implications for computer privacy, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled that federal investigators went too far when they seized the digital records of a drug testing company and kept the results of confidential drug tests performed on all Major League baseball players during the 2002 season.

According to published reports, 104 players tested positive for performance enhancing drugs. The names of four of them — Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, and (now retired) Sammy Sosa — were leaked to the press by an anonymous source or sources.

The court upheld a ruling by Judge Florence-Marie Cooper of the Central District Court of California that required the government to yield records taken in the investigation. The judges ruled that law-enforcement agents went far beyond the scope of the warrant authorizing a search of the records of 10 ballplayers for whom the government had established probable cause. Government officials said they are considering an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court."