You ate a grilled cheese in your home and wipe the crumbs into the bin. The police arrest you for destruction of evidence for robbing a bank that never even got robbed. Then they hit you with qualified immunity and high five each other.
It's utterly ridiculous that police seem to just have infinite powers now. All they have to do is say "I suspect" and they have boundless ability to arrest anyone (potentially losing their job or missing key life events), declare any object as evidence (which the department can conveniently keep for themselves even if you're found innocent), or use mass surveillance systems (to stalk women).
EDIT: Finding another article, it's even worse. He didn't do it at all - he was interrogated, was never allowed his lawyer, never read rights, with no warrant. And after having the device seized an agent triggered the device wipe themselves by trying to get in under this duress.
So in this case, the the cop eats the grilled cheese and throws out the crumbs and then arrests you for destruction of evidence.
With respect to the phone, I'd say one has the right to delete everything on one's phone at any time. There is no evidence that the person in question was "destroying evidence" because there was no evidence - or suspicion, or charges, or anything substantive.
I think the authorities just got ticked off by the duress password, and they're flinging mud.
No authority should ever be above that, unless you take those same rights away from another.
Authority and the State steals these rights from us, slowly eroding them under the guise of safety, passing immoral midnight legislation like Chat Control, or declaring a state of emergency. Time and time again we find ourselves in a prison and time and time again we start the next inevitable revolution.
If the border isn't "US soil" then what jurisdiction is it?
How come American forces can seize goods if that's not US? What prevents them from trying the same, e.g. in Europe or Australia?
Also I find the law penalizing people who might deprive state of evidence especially odd. In (AFAIK) most of the Europe there's no self indictment, so destroying any kind of evidence that might get you indicted is fair game and you can't get penalized by such fact alone.
And of all of it the fact that US government is pulling this stuff on US citizens is unbelievable.
No idea, might be only me, but I start to perceive US more and more as a totalitarian state.
You're starting to perceive us as totalitarian? We are! For 30% of us, proudly, apparently. Our president attempted to violently overthrow our government for God's sake!
In the US there's no self indictment but it's interpreted as applying to anything in your mind, not to physical things. You can not be compelled to answer a question (except if you have been granted immunity about what you will say) but things like your fingerprints are fair game. Likewise, your phone.
The part of this case that I find bad is that there are no charges. This was a fishing expedition, cops can't get warrants for fishing expeditions. I find using the border patrol's ability to inspect arriving individuals for local law enforcement way out of line.
I've searched and found that Australia has similar concept. According to EU laws person on-territory is under jurisdictiction of said territory (even though it might bar from entering, but still EU/local laws apply there) - this is probably why I'm so surprised.
Also regarding this exact nuke-phone-through-distress-password: in many European countries it's perfectly legal to protect oneself from law. While the law is nuanced (i.e. one might not be obligated to provide password, and responsibility for destruction can be put on forces as they could be found at failure when securing device), usually it's fair game.
In the end I just find this terrifying. The idea that I'm getting back from vacations and then I get myself as probed like that. Here, the only things I'm afraid of are... queues.
But he's a US citizen? Do US citizens need permission to be in their country? Where else would they be if not granted?
US border thinking seems insane
It used to not even be like this - you could just like; move to France 150 years ago or move to the US and nobody gave a damn (I’m simplifying it, but basically this is the case). The only places where this wasn’t the case was like messed up countries like Russia or feudal China, but even then, borders were way more porous.
We got stupid after WW1 and were paying for that to this day. These imaginary lines will go away one day, I just hope it happens before their cause our extinction.
If I have a dash-cam in my car and it records me speeding - am I not allowed to overwrite the old footage? What if that dash-cam footage is the only thing that proves a crime were committed? Now I am forced to let my possessions testify against me.