Grab your thumb, yes. Chalk your tires, no.
And while a Federal District Judge in Massachusetts ruled this week that it is constitutional to grab random thumbs and force them on to phones, a 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruled unanimously that it is a US 4th Amendment violation to chalk tires.
Chalking tires is an old established practice of identifying cars that have been parked too long - if the chalk's still there in two hours, here comes a ticket.
The 6th Circuit ruled that when the tire is chalked, the tire (and the car and driver) are not even under a suspicion of breaking any laws, and therefore it's unconstitutional to make the chalk mark in the first place. (Even though the car is on a public street, and no entry is made, it still constitutes an illegal search to make that chalk mark.)
It should be interesting if the District Court judge's thumb ruling is appealed to the First Circuit Court of Appeals, which oversees Massachusetts. Will they follow the lead of the Sixth and say that thumbs are even more personal than ... no bodily contact at all?? Or will they give the Sixth a middle finger instead?
Article on chalking tire ruling: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/04/23/chalking-tires-parking-tickets-unconstitutional-court-rules/3549631002/
Biting the hand that feeds IT
