Thoughts 18 Oct 2008 03:41 pm
GPS Tracking Devices are Becoming Common
Washington Post - Someone was attacking women in Fairfax County and Alexandria, grabbing them from behind and sometimes punching and molesting them before running away. After logging 11 cases in six months, police finally identified a suspect.
David Lee Foltz Jr., who had served 17 years in prison for rape, lived near the crime scenes. To figure out if Foltz was the assailant, police pulled out their secret weapon: They put a Global Positioning System device on Foltz’s van, which allowed them to track his movements.
Police said they soon caught Foltz dragging a woman into a wooded area in Falls Church. After his arrest on Feb. 6, the string of assaults suddenly stopped. The break in the case relied largely on a crime-fighting tool they would rather not discuss.
So far, the U.S. Supreme Court has not weighed in on unwarranted GPS tracking, but supporters point to a 1983 case that said police do not need a warrant to track a car on a public street with a beeper, which relays the car’s location to police.
As a civilian, should you feel the need; you can go online to a company like Brick House Security and buy a device, place it on their vehicle and pay a monthly fee to track your future ex-wife, your teenager or your business partner.
This unit is attached by magnets, costs $1999 but doesn’t require a service since it reports directly to a cell phone tethered to your laptop.
The Brick House site has a bunch of other cool stuff. –Including voice changers for making those anonymous threatening phone calls to your boss… Oops. Did I say that out loud?