Here's something else our government forgot to tell us about: Some police now have access to a radar that can see through walls of houses.

It is being reported by the USA Today that "at least 50 U.S. law enforcement agencies have secretly equipped their officers with radar devices that allow them to effectively peer through the walls of houses to see whether anyone is inside, a practice raising new concerns about the extent of government surveillance."

The agencies they speak of include the FBI and the U.S.Marshals Service, but the biggest surprise to me is that these agencies apparently began using the radar systems more than two years ago without letting anyone know about them.

Obviously this new (well, I guess you may be able to say "not so new") technology raises legal and privacy issues. The U.S. Supreme Court said repeatedly that law enforcement agencies generally cannot use high-tech sensors to tell them about the inside of a person's house without first obtaining a search warrant.

This is how the radars work: today, they are basically finely tuned motion detectors that use radio waves to hone in on movements — as small as human breathing — from a distance of more than 50 feet. They apparently can determine whether anyone is inside of a house, where they are located and whether they are moving.

As reported by USA Today, the American Civil Liberties Union's principal technologist said, "The idea that the government can send signals through the wall of your house to figure out what's inside is problematic," as well as, "Technologies that allow the police to look inside of a home are among the intrusive tools that police have."

The radar the Marshals Service and other police agencies are using, known as the Range-R, looks like a sophisticated stud-finder. Its display shows whether it has detected movement on the other side of a wall — but it is important to note that it does not show a picture of what's happening inside, at least not yet.

The radars were originally designed and used in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Do think it was right for the government to not inform us of this new technology they were using?

Are you alright with this technology being used without the courts consent via a warrant?

Are you troubled by this?

What are your thoughts about this new technology and its use by our law enforcement agencies?

Call me today on the Live with Renk show, which airs Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to noon, to let me know your thoughts at (269) 441-9595.

Or please feel free to start a discussion and write your thoughts in the comment section.

 

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