Just to play devil's advocate, how is unlocking a phone any different than our existing warrant-based searches? Warrant-based searches are explicitly supported in the fourth amendment you site. We've lived with court-ordered warrants since the country was founded, which strikes a reasonable balance between the needs of law enforcement to obtain evidence against the sanctity and privacy of our homes and personal property. At this moment, if a judge ordered it, law enforcement could come into your home and demand access to absolutely everything you own. What is it, in your opinion, that makes a phone different than anything else that we consider personal or private?
The police (FBI in this case) are not allowed to use the system for fishing expeditions. The 4th explicitly states:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The FBI has established probable cause but they have not, to my satisfaction, demonstrated particularity. Exactly what do they expect to find on the phone? To put it simply, they are fishing for anything they can get out of it.
It can also be argued there is a 1st Amendment reason to protect the phone data since it is copyrighted material thanks to the Copyright nuts getting copyright the moment a document is created. This would kick in a higher standard for probable cause. See:
http://constitution.findlaw.co...