Fort Bend Independent School District v. Ken Paxton, Attorney General of Texas
FourthAmendment TradeSecret Privacy
Does compelled disclosure of public employees' personal cell phone call logs under state law violate federal law when the government cannot segregate public and private content?
The Fourth Amendment protects “the right of the people to be secure in their . . . papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” U.S. Const., amend. IV. A federal statute likewise prohibits the “transfer” or “receipt” of “confidential phone records,” including call logs. 18 U.S.C. § 1039(b), (c). Despite these authorities, a lower court required a governmental body to acquire and disclose its employees’ personal cell phone call logs in response to a public records request, under Tex. Gov’t Code § 552.002(a), even though the government cannot ascertain the public or private nature of the logs. App. 7a–15a. The question presented is: Does compelled disclosure of public employees’ personal cell phone call logs under state law violate federal law when the government (1) does not own the logs or otherwise have a right to transfer the logs, and (2) cannot segregate the information into public and private content?