State v. Meredith, 337 Or. 299

Summary

The Oregon Supreme Court held that the attachment and monitoring of an electronic tracking device on a government employer-owned truck did not constitute a search under Article I, section 9, of the Oregon Constitution. The court distinguished its prior decision involving a private vehicle, concluding that the defendant had no protected privacy interest in the truck's location or her work-related activities while using employer-owned property during work hours. The court affirmed the Court of Appeals and the circuit court's judgment.

Holdings

1. Under the circumstances of this case, neither attaching the transmitter to the employer-owned truck nor monitoring the transmitter's location invaded a protected privacy interest of Meredith; therefore, no search occurred under Article I, section 9.
2. State v. Campbell did not establish that the secret use of a transmitter constitutes a search in every context; the Article I, section 9, inquiry remains dependent on the particular privacy interest and factual context involved.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the attachment of an electronic tracking transmitter to an employer-owned truck and the subsequent monitoring of the truck's location constituted a search under Article I, section 9, of the Oregon Constitution.
2. Whether State v. Campbell required the court to treat the secret use of a transmitter as a search regardless of the context and the defendant's privacy interest in the monitored property and activities.

Disposition

affirmed