Search of E-Mails Without Warrant Ruled Unlawful
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CINCINNATI — Federal investigators overstepped constitutional bounds by searching e-mails without a warrant during a fraud investigation related to an herbal supplement company known for its “Smiling Bob” ads, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday.
The ruling by a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upholds a lower court ruling temporarily blocking investigators from additional e-mail searches in the case against Steven Warshak, owner and president of Berkeley Premium Nutraceuticals.
Mr. Warshak, whose company markets supplements that include a “natural male enhancement” product called Enzyte, argued that his Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches were violated when the government went after his e-mail records.
“The district court correctly determined that e-mail users maintain a reasonable expectation of privacy in the content of their emails,” Judge Boyce Martin said.
