That&#x27;s understood, but I think the expenditure of money and time are not just to get records, but also to ensure the oversight that protects our rights. For instance a search warrant issued to the phone company could be limited to time-stamp data, thus preventing the police from conducting a broader search without cause. Also, the warrant creates a record of what was searched. I believe that the public interest in oversight of the police could be reasonably balanced against the cost of that oversight.<p>If it&#x27;s actually desirable that the fact of an accident be treated as probable cause for such a search, then the warrant would not be all that hard to obtain. In general, warrantless searches need to be justified by some kind of immediate need, not just cost and convenience.