Be afraid of Apple...

[famousringo]

Rath said:

famousringo said:

Rath said:

 

I think the reason a subpoena is required is to specify what information can be taken and investigated and so it can be challenged. It's to stop the state/police intimidating journalists or taking damaging revelations back before they can be released.

@TheRealMafoo. Not above the law, just slightly different under the law. Your crime can and will still be investigated, it's just how its investigated that comes into question I think.

 

Certainly the shield law has had enough of an effect that they have halted the investigation (not looking at Chen's stuff) until they have sorted it out, seems odd to do this after the raid though, you think they would have checked if they could do the raid before they actually did it...

If they have to use a subpoena to criminally investigate Chen, he can invoke the fifth and the police will have no recourse to get at any evidence in Chen's house. If that's the case, it's a good thing he's pretty much publicly confessed to paying $5,000 dollars for stolen property, because any evidence of illegal activities in the Chen household cannot be investigated.

I'm sure there are quite a few shady characters out there who would love to start up a blog to get that kind of immunity and aren't stupid enough to brag about their illegal activities to the whole internet.

A subpoena would be used to gather evidence from his house. subpoena duces tecum

I'm not claiming to have a legal background, but the people in the article I linked to do:

"The three lawyers I interviewed agreed that if the shield laws applied, they would protect bloggers.

Mr. Zimmerman said that if a judge fould that the warrant was invalid, the computers and other seized property would be returned to Mr. Chen — at that point, the authorities may try to subpoena him.

But he added that it was unclear whether the San Mateo authorities wanted to charge Mr. Chen, or whether they just wanted to know who sold Gizmodo the phone.

Either way, Mr. Chen could invoke his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself under the  Constitution, he and other lawyers said."

They subpoena Mr. Chen to show up in court and bring any files relating to his payment of $5,000 for a stolen device, and Chen utters the words of many a famous mafioso, "no, I have a right not to incriminate myself," and the files stay safely at home.