How a lobsterman's privacy fight reached SCOTUS — and could ripple far beyond the water: 'Ain't over yet'

Frank Thompson, a fifth-generation lobsterman from Vinalhaven, Maine, says he will keep contesting a federal requirement that his boat carry a GPS tracker, even though the Supreme Court has refused to take up his case. The justices' decision leaves intact a First Circuit ruling that upheld the mandate. That court reasoned that heavy government oversight of the lobster business means the Fourth Amendment's protections apply differently there, according to Fox News.

Thompson, who runs Fox Island Lobster Company with his wife and two sons, argues the device amounts to round-the-clock surveillance, comparing it to an "ankle bracelet." He told Fox News Digital that a son texted him the news while he was out fishing. His reaction was that the fight was not finished. According to the Maine Department of Marine Resources, the unit records a vessel's position every minute while it is moving and every six hours while it is tied up. Thompson says it also logs personal outings, such as a trip to the mainland or a family picnic, and that he is uneasy not knowing who can see the data. He is not a criminal, he says, and he fears the dispute could affect other industries beyond fishing.

Summarized by PolitiKool from Fox News’s reporting. Read the full story at Fox News →