A federal appeals court is considering whether authorities violated the constitutional rights of two Unified Firefighters whose prescription drug history was accessed during a criminal investigation.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments Tuesday in Marlon Jones and Ryan Pyle’s lawsuit against Cottonwood Heights, who accuse authorities there of violating their Fourth Amendment rights against search and seizure.
In 2013, authorities were investigating the disappearance of prescription painkillers from ambulances. As part of the investigation, law enforcement accessed 480 Unified Fire Authority employees’ prescription drug histories without a warrant. Pyle and Jones were charged with wrongfully acquiring prescription drugs, although the criminal cases were ultimately dismissed.