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# Bill Requiring Warrant to Track Mobile Devices Passes Mo. House 134-13
- URL: https://ivn.us/bill-requiring-warrant-track-mobile-devices-passes-mo-house-134-13/
- Published: 2014-03-17T14:00:11.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-22T19:44:19.000Z
- Author: Carl Wicklander
- Tags: News

In Missouri, the state House of Representatives recently and overwhelmingly [passed](http://www.stltoday.com/news/state-and-regional/missouri/mo-house-passes-curb-on-electronic-tracking/article%5F18fb1003-a2bf-5f61-9e17-8c8d64937bba.html?ref=ivn.us) a bill that would compel law enforcement officials to get a warrant before tracking a person's electronic mobile device(s).

[Two pages](http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills141/billpdf/perf/HB1388P.PDF?ref=ivn.us) long, Missouri House Bill 1388 amends Chapter 542 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri pertaining to "Proceedings to Preserve the Peace - Searches and Seizures." The bill is sponsored by Republican [Robert Cornejo](http://www.house.mo.gov/member.aspx?district=064&ref=ivn.us) of St. Peters, who [said](http://mdn.org/2014/STORIES/CELL130.HTM?ref=ivn.us) upon introducing his bill in January, "The data you're able to collect off a cell phone is pretty powerful . . . law enforcement officials can now access a pretty clear picture of your entire life," without having to prove probable cause.

One critic of Cornejo's bill is fellow Republican State Rep. Bill White of Jopline, who [said](http://mdn.org/2014/STORIES/CELL130.HTM?ref=ivn.us):

> "I appreciate what you're doing in terms of privacy, but I want to make sure we don't hamstring law enforcement in legitimate activities."

The amendment outlines the conditions in which one's electronic devices may be tracked: "A government entity shall not obtain the location information of an electronic device without a search warrant issued by a court of competent jurisdiction," [unless](http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills141/billpdf/perf/HB1388P.PDF?ref=ivn.us):

> 1\. The device is reported stolen by the owner;2\. To respond to the user's call for emergency services;3\. With the informed affirmative consent of the owner or user of the electronic device; or4\. A possible life-threatening situation exists

The bill goes on to say that any evidence obtained that violates the amendment will be inadmissible in "civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding." The

[Republican-led](http://ballotpedia.org/Missouri%5FHouse%5Fof%5FRepresentatives?ref=ivn.us) Missouri House of Representatives [passed](http://www.stltoday.com/news/state-and-regional/missouri/mo-house-passes-curb-on-electronic-tracking/article%5F18fb1003-a2bf-5f61-9e17-8c8d64937bba.html?ref=ivn.us) HB 1388 134-13, receiving strong support from both parties. The bill now moves to the Missouri [Senate](http://ballotpedia.org/Missouri%5FSenate?ref=ivn.us) where Republicans also hold a majority, 24-9\. If it passes, then it moves to the desk of Democratic Governor Jay Nixon.

Nixon has not indicated what he will do with the bill, which still faces the Senate, but the second-term governor already has the distinction of being the Missouri chief executive with the most veto [overrides](http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2013/09/13/veto-session-makes-governor-most-overridden-in-almost-two-centuries/?ref=ivn.us) in nearly two hundred years. While Republicans tallied up ten veto overrides during a single session in 2013, the bigger issues of a GOP tax cut and the state's interposition on federal gun regulations [fell short](http://www.pitch.com/FastPitch/archives/2013/09/12/3799456-missouri-legislature-overrides-several-jay-nixon-vetoes-but-not-the-ones-gop-leaders-really-wanted?ref=ivn.us) of an override.

In addition to requiring government agencies to get a search warrant before tracking an electronic device, [Missouri](http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/01/26/missouri-pushes-for-state-sovereignty/4915629/?ref=ivn.us) has been at the forefront of the so-called state sovereignty [movement](http://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2009/02/09/state-sovereignty-movement-quietly-growing/?doing%5Fwp%5Fcron=1395009858.7185120582580566406250&ref=ivn.us#.UyZMYIWTK8A). Other Missouri legislation designed to curb federal government power has included a variety of bills nullifying certain federal gun laws as well as same-sex marriage, which Missouri voters rejected in 2004.

*Photo Credit: Alan Brandt / AP*