A Tampa, Florida, judge ordered a man who was pulled over for speeding and subsequently found to have a small amount of marijuana on him to be held in jail for six months because he failed to unlock his two phones for police, reports Fox 13.
On June 21, William Montanez was pulled over for a traffic violation. When police asked to search his car, Montanez refused, so the police brought in a drug-sniffing dog, which found the pot. The police then asked Montanez for permission to search the two phones he had on him, and Montanez refused, leading the officers to get a warrant.
After the warrant was obtained, Montanez said he couldn’t remember the passcodes to the phones. This led Montanez to appear in court where the judge then ordered Montanez to unlock his phones. Montanez again said he could not remember the passcodes–leading the judge to imprison him for six months.
Montanez’s lawyer said his client’s case should serve as a message to everyone, warning:
“If they arrest you for anything–whether it’s drugs, guns, you name it–and an electronic device is nearby, they can get a search warrant and search it. And if you don’t provide that information to search it, to unlock, because you want to keep the information private, we’ll put you in jail.”
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