Neil Gorsuch agrees government access to Location History was a search
Neil GorsuchU.S. Supreme Court justice, concurring in the judgment
Gorsuch agreed that government access to Chatrie's Location History amounted to a Fourth Amendment search.
“government’s examination of Okello Chatrie’s Location History data amounted to a search for purposes of the Fourth Amendment.”
Original text
Original text
Where this statement fits
Should police access to Google Location History count as a Fourth Amendment search?
In Chatrie v. United States, the government argued that voluntarily sharing Google Location History meant police acquisition of the limited data did not trigger Fourth Amendment protection. The ACLU and NetChoice opposed that position. On June 29, 2026, the Supreme Court held that acquisition was a search. Samuel Alito dissented, distinguishing the short, optional location record from prolonged surveillance. The ruling left the warrant's reasonableness for further proceedings and did not ban every geofence warrant or decide suppression of the evidence.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
The judgment treats acquisition of Location History as a search and remands questions about the warrant's reasonableness. It does not invalidate every geofence warrant or order suppression of the evidence.
Original text
About this source
The government argues that the data was voluntarily shared and alternatively defends the warrant's reasonableness. These are its litigation arguments.
Before the quotation
Gorsuch agreed with the Court's judgment that the government had searched Chatrie's Location History.
After the quotation
He proposed asking whether Location History qualifies as Chatrie's papers or effects and whether the government searched them.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case centers on the government's position that obtaining Location History was not a search. Gorsuch expressly rejects that position and agrees that the acquisition was a search.
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More from this case
Read the full caseKetanji Brown Jackson says the geofence search violated the Fourth Amendment
“I write separately because I would have gone further to explain that this search violated the Fourth Amendment.”Read statement
Supreme Court holds that access to Chatrie location data was a search
Supreme Court of the United States
“the police conducted a search when they gained access to Location History data.”Read statement
Alito says Chatrie "assumed the risk" by giving Google his location information
“So, by giving Google his location information for its own use, Chatrie assumed the risk that Google might disclose location information to others, including the police.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Neil Gorsuch agrees government access to Location History was a search". First published: 2026-10-16. Last updated: 2026-10-16. https://disputeindex.com/events/5844-gorsuch-agreed-that-government-access-to-chatrie-s