One August morning, around 6:30 a.m., a fire occurred at Ray and Christine Nixon’s home in West Monroe, Louisiana, while the Nixons were inside the home. The Nixons told Detective Gary Gilley of the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Department that they believed the fire had been deliberately set by Matthew Alexander, a former employee of Ray’s company. Ray gave Alexander’s phone number to Gilley, who contacted the number’s service provider, Verizon Wireless Services, L.L.C. Gilley said that he was investigating a house fire and that he wanted to know where the number’s subscriber had been that day. He did not present a warrant, but he did certify that Verizon’s response would be considered an “emergency disclosure.” [Alexander v. Verizon Wireless Services, L.L.C., 875 F.3d 243 (5th Cir. 2017)] (See Social Media.)

(a) Using the Inquiry and Discussion steps in the IDDR approach, identify the ethical dilemma that Verizon faced in this situation and actions that the company might have taken to resolve that issue.

(b) Suppose that Verizon gave Gilley the requested information and that later Alexander filed a suit against the provider, alleging a violation of the Stored Communications Act. Could Verizon successfully plead “good faith” in its defense?