Senator Leahy Questions Barr about Carpenter Privacy Case

During the nomination hearing for the next Attorney General, Senator Leahy asked Mr. Barr whether the Supreme Court's recent decision in the Carpenter case affected his views on privacy. "You had said that a person has no Fourth Amendment right to these records left in the hands of third parties—the third-party doctrine—which seems to be undercut by Carpenter," observed Senator Leahy. Barr responded, somewhat surprisingly, that he had "not read that decision" but "it may modify [his] views." Senator Leahy said he would expect an answer from the nominee to a written question. EPIC filed an amicus brief in Carpenter. The Supreme Court ruled that the Fourth Amendment protects location records stored by telephone companies.