A Clark County District Court judge has ordered the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department to respond to Google’s legal challenge to a warrant seeking information tied to people’s Google searches. Google has asked the court to quash what it describes as an illegal, overly broad warrant. The company argues that the request violates state and federal constitutional protections. Court documents cited in the case characterize the warrant as a reverse keyword search, a type of request that can seek information about searches matching terms investigators specify. The order, issued by Judge Erika Mendoza on Wednesday, requires LVMPD to answer Google’s challenge. The underlying investigation and the specific search terms sought were not detailed in the information available about the case. The dispute centers on a potential investigative tool: search-history data that could help police pursue a lead, but could also reveal what people are looking for online. The legal challenge comes amid billions of Google searches each day, according to the information presented in the case. Christopher Peterson, legal director of the ACLU of Nevada, said the warrant raises concerns about privacy and free expression. He said people could be deterred from searching for even innocuous information if they worry that police might learn what they looked up. Peterson said Google’s commercial interests do not negate the role the company can play by contesting warrants. He also connected the privacy concerns to a separate ACLU of Nevada case before the state Supreme Court over LVMPD’s agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. LVMPD did not respond to a request for comment. The judge’s order does not resolve Google’s challenge; the department’s response will allow the court to consider the dispute.