We Warned About DCI's Warrantless Searches. The Supreme Court Just Proved Why It Matters
By Accountable Iowa
July 27, 2026
When Iowa's Division of Criminal Investigation came under fire for using warrantless geofence searches during its botched sports gambling investigation, we alerted Accountable Iowa supporters that the issue was bigger than sports betting. It was about whether government officials could sidestep the Constitution in the name of an investigation.
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered a clear answer.
In Chatrie v. United States, the Court ruled that when law enforcement obtains people's cellphone location data through a geofence warrant, it is conducting a Fourth Amendment search. As Justice Elena Kagan wrote, Americans have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their location history, even when that information is held by a third-party company like Google. The government can't simply sweep up everyone's digital whereabouts without triggering constitutional protections.
That's an important victory for every Iowan. But it's also only half the story.
The DCI gambling investigation became a public scandal because defendants had the ability to challenge the government's actions in court. Through subpoenas, depositions, and the lawsuit discovery process, allegations of unconstitutional conduct came to light. We didn't learn about the government's alleged overreach because it admitted wrongdoing. We learned because citizens had the power to hold government accountable.
That's why Accountable Iowa consistently opposes efforts to weaken Iowans' rights in the courtroom. The Fourth Amendment protects us from unreasonable government searches. The Seventh Amendment and our civil justice system ensure government officials answer for it when they cross the line.
As State Representative Megan Jones said on the Iowa House floor in 2025 regarding DCI's warrantless searches, “We only know about this because of a lawsuit…Iowans deserve to seek redress from their government without the fear of being spied on.”
Constitutional rights don't enforce themselves. Citizens do. And when the government crosses the line, Iowans must always have the power to make it answer for its actions.