Cell phone data retrieval and a new free tool to use! W/ Benjamin Van Mete

This talk will cover the basics of cellphone data retrieved from phone carriers and how to use a new, open-source tool we’ve developed to map location data such as a cellphone’s GPS coordinates, cell tower usage, and distance from a cell tower. This tool produces visualizations of cellphone location data similar to the maps seen in an FBI CAST report and allows users to easily copy data received in discovery and quickly map it. As we’ll talk about, this tool has proven very helpful for triage work as attorneys and investigators sort through discovery – comparing this information with other location data of interest (e.g. crime scenes, surveillance locations, witness/client residences), checking the State’s evidence, determining the necessity of a forensic expert, and assessing the feasibility of different defenses.

Benjamin Van Meter has worked as a trial attorney for the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender in Essex County since October 2022 and is also a staff attorney with OPD’s Police Accountability Unit. He previously clerked with Justice Barry Albin of the New Jersey Supreme Court and Judge Kevin McNulty of the New Jersey federal district court. Prior to law school, he worked for the investigative and cybersecurity company K2 Intelligence where he conducted background checks, private investigations, corporate due diligence research, and anti-money laundering analysis. Ben graduated from Tufts University in 2013 with a BA in Russian and East European Studies and graduated from Cornell Law School in 2020 with a JD in public law.