Katz v United States is a 1967 decision of the United States Supreme Court that redefined the scope of Fourth Amendment privacy protection. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents attached a listening device to the outside of a public telephone booth that Katz used to transmit illegal gambling wagers, recording his conversations without a warrant. The Court held that the Fourth Amendment protects people rather than simply places, so a warrantless recording of a conversation Katz reasonably expected to remain private violated the Constitution even though the agents never physically entered the booth. The decision replaced an older test based on physical trespass with the reasonable expectation of privacy standard that still governs most Fourth Amendment search analysis today.
Facts
Decision Year Decision Date HoldingKatz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court redefined what constitutes a "search" or "seizure" with regard to the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. 2 Current StatusRemains good law; the Katz reasonable expectation of privacy test continues to be applied in Fourth Amendment cases, including those on modern surveillance. 2 Case Status
Case Status (category) FAQs
What test did Katz v United States adopt for Fourth Amendment searches?
The reasonable expectation of privacy standard replaced the physical trespass test.
The Supreme Court held in 1967 that the Fourth Amendment protects people rather than simply places, so a warrantless recording of a conversation Katz reasonably expected to remain private violated the Constitution even though agents never physically entered the telephone booth. The decision replaced an older test based on physical trespass with the reasonable expectation of privacy standard.
What were the facts behind Katz v United States?
FBI agents recorded his calls from outside a phone booth without a warrant.
Federal Bureau of Investigation agents attached a listening device to the outside of a public telephone booth that Katz used to transmit illegal gambling wagers, recording his conversations without a warrant. The Katz test remains good law and continues to be applied in Fourth Amendment cases, including those on modern surveillance.
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Source Katz v United States (Wikipedia)Lead sentence 2tier 2Quote, Lead sentence 2
United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967), is a landmark decision of the U.S.
Sources
1. Wikidata: Katz v United States
2. Katz v United States (Wikipedia)
WikipediaInfobox: decidedate
December 18
Wikipedia lead paragraph, first sentence
Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court redefined what constitutes a "search" or "seizure" with regard to the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Lead section, second paragraph
The Katz test has since been used in numerous cases
In Group: Police Powers, Search and Confession Cases, Introduction, sentence 1
Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court redefined what constitutes a "search" or "seizure" with regard to the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
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