“You’re protected under the Missouri constitution and the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. constitution that you will be secure in your persons, papers, homes and effects,” says Republican state Sen. Rob Schaaf. “And this would just add on ‘electronic communications’ to that, which is what people expect. People want to be secure in knowing that if they text each other that the government isn’t going to be snooping and reading all of their texts and emails.”
Schaaf, along with fellow Missouri Republican state Rep. Paul Curtman, is advancing an amendment to Missouri’s state constitution that would curtail warrantless electronic surveillance. The state representatives are calling for a referendum that would ask voters “Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended so that the people shall be secure in their electronic communications and data from unreasonable searches and seizures as they are now likewise secure in their persons, homes, papers and effects?”
While the amendment would not, in and of itself, hinder the activities of federal agencies like the NSA, it would strictly prohibit police departments and other entities within the state from warrantlessly surveilling Missourians. Its authors hope that the amendment will send a clear message to Washington.
Related: Missouri Moves to Nullify Federal Gun Laws (VIDEO) | The Libertarian Republic
