HB 145 DE
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO REVERSE LOCATION AND REVERSE KEYWORD SEARCHES AND COURT ORDERS.
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Summary
The bill prohibits law enforcement and courts from requesting, issuing, or enforcing reverse-keyword court orders and reverse-keyword search requests, with an exception allowing their use in investigations of suspected Class A felonies if the search returns five or fewer search results. The bill requires that evidence obtained from an unlawful reverse-keyword search be suppressed in legal proceedings.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill (from the OpenStates abstract — no full text available yet) — neutral, and may be imperfect.
Official abstract
Reverse-keyword court orders enable the government to obtain technology search data without identifying any specific person as to which there is probable cause to believe they have committed or will imminently commit a crime. The profusion of electronic devices and apps in recent years has allowed recordation of numerous details of citizen’s everyday lives, that the government should not be permitted to collect and review at will. Such general searches allow the government to sweep in personal information about hundreds or thousands of people who are not suspected of having committed any crime. These searches are an invasion of privacy, have a potentially chilling effect on civil liberties, and sidestep requirements for individualized suspicion that are otherwise required for a lawful search. This House Substitute for House Bill No. 145 would prohibit law enforcement and courts from requesting, issuing, or enforcing reverse-keyword court orders and reverse-keyword requests, with the exception that reverse-keyword court orders and requests may be utilized to investigate suspected Class A Felonies so long as the search query returns 5 or fewer search hits. It also requires the suppression of evidence derived from an unlawful reverse-keyword search.
Sponsors (6)
- Madinah Wilson-Anton Democratic · primary
- Marie Pinkney Democratic · primary
- Bryant L. Richardson Republican · primary
- Eric Morrison Democratic · primary
- Mara Gorman Democratic · primary
- Kerri Evelyn Harris Democratic · primary
Action history (8)
- Apr 14, 2026 Adopted in lieu of the original bill HB 145, and Assigned to Judiciary Committee in House · lower
- May 6, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in House with 1 Favorable, 5 On Its Merits · lower
- May 19, 2026 Amendment HA 1 to HS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill · lower
- May 19, 2026 Amendment HA 1 to HS 1 - Passed In House by Voice Vote · lower
- May 19, 2026 Passed By House. Votes: 24 YES 12 NO 5 ABSENT · lower
- May 19, 2026 Assigned to Judiciary Committee in Senate · upper
- Jun 24, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in Senate with 4 On Its Merits · upper
- Jul 1, 2026 Passed By Senate. Votes: 11 YES 4 NO 6 ABSENT · upper
Full text
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