Knight Ridder Newspapers
Gonzales urges Patriot Act's renewal
Wed Apr 6, 2005 16:23
64.140.158.12
Gonzales urges Patriot Act's renewal
By FRANK DAVIES
Knight Ridder Newspapers
Posted on Tue, Apr. 05, 2005
WASHINGTON - Pledging conciliation with Congress, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales told senators Tuesday that he would accept some modifications to the USA Patriot Act, but he urged that all its major provisions be renewed to effectively fight terrorism.
"Thanks in part to the act, we have dismantled terrorist cells, disrupted terrorist plots and captured terrorists before they could strike," Gonzales told the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Acknowledging criticism from the right and left, Gonzales and FBI Director Robert Mueller said they wanted to assure Congress that the act's new search and surveillance powers had been used narrowly and not to monitor the reading habits or personal data of a broad range of people.
Gonzales also admitted that the Justice Department "took too long" to report to Congress on how the act had been used. He promised to "treat those who express concerns about the Patriot Act with respect and listen to their concerns with an open mind."
Several members of the committee said this conciliatory approach was in sharp contrast to John Ashcroft, Gonzales' predecessor, who refused to respond to requests for some records and once said that administration critics were indirectly helping terrorists.
"The attorney general has now announced that he too recognizes that our concerns are not so far-fetched," said Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., who cast the lone Senate vote against the act, which gave the FBI broad new police and surveillance powers. "I welcome this sea change in the administration's attitude."
The Justice Department also released new information Tuesday on how the act has been used. Perhaps the most controversial section - allowing searches of such personal information as medical records and book selections at public libraries - has been authorized only 35 times by a special surveillance court, Gonzales said.
He said no library, medical or gun-sale search orders had been sought under the Patriot Act, though Mueller said later that the FBI had obtained some library records by request, without using the act.
Gonzales also said he was willing to modify the law to make it clear that the subject of a secret search warrant can consult a lawyer and challenge the warrant in court.
The attorney general may not have much choice in being more cooperative. When Congress passed the far-reaching Patriot Act six weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, it included a "sunset" provision to force a more thorough review of the new police powers.
Gonzales is the point person seeking re-enactment of 16 provisions in the bill, which would otherwise expire by the end of this year. He will also appear Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee.
Senate Democrats aren't the only ones with qualms about the Patriot Act. Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., closely questioned Gonzales and said he'd like to tighten some of the "very broad language" that allows "sneak and peek" searches in which a person isn't told about a search until days or weeks later.
Gonzales said those special searches had been used 155 times.
The administration also must counter the coalition of groups seeking some revisions in the act, from the American Civil Liberties Union to the American Conservative Union and gun-rights groups.
Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, also announced they will introduce a bill to restrict some provisions, including library and sneak-and-peek searches.
But Gonzales and Mueller were adamant that the Patriot Act was crucial in the war on terrorism and that some of the criticism of the act resulted from misrepresentation and misunderstanding.
"Critics suggest some provisions lack significant safeguards on searches and wiretaps, but that concern ignores considerable safeguards and limitations that are firmly in place," Mueller said.
The FBI director also said he would seek broader administrative subpoena power in terrorism cases, similar to the authority the FBI has in drug trafficking and organized crime cases.
(Davies reports for The Miami Herald.)
==================
Patriot Act's secret searches used 108 times
http://www.infowars.com/articles/ps/patriot_act_secret_searches_used_108_times.htm
By Declan McCullagh
The section of the Patriot Act permitting police to surreptitiously enter and search a home or office without notifying the owner has reportedly been used 108 times during a 22-month period.
RELATED:
Record number of terror warrants approved
The U.S. Justice Department released the figures, which cover the period from October 2001 through April 2003, late Monday. The release comes as the Senate and House of Representatives are beginning a series of hearings this week to decide whether to renew portions of the controversial 2001 law that are set to expire on Dec. 31. The section of the law that allows the searches is not one of those set to expire, but data about the provision was released as part of the review.
"Delayed-notification search warrants are used in a wide spectrum of criminal investigations, including those involving terrorism and drugs," the Justice Department said in a statement. "Like any other search warrant, delayed-notification warrants under Section 213 may only be issued after showing probable cause and obtaining the express approval of a judge."
Section 213 of the Patriot Act authorizes so-called sneak-and-peek entries in cases where alerting someone that a surreptitious search took place may have an "adverse result" on a police investigation. Eventually the owner of the home or office is supposed to be notified, though the law says that deadline can be "extended" without limit if police make a good case for it.
Even though the Patriot Act was enacted as a response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Section 213's powers are not limited to investigations of terrorists and spies. Instead, sneak-and-peek searches may be used to investigate any federal felony or misdemeanor, from firearms violations to marijuana possession or copyright infringement.
Sneak-and-peek searches were used before the Patriot Act, but their legality was less clear then. One case involved the FBI surreptitiously entering the office of an alleged mobster to implant a key logger that recorded his PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) passphrase.
In a 1979 case called Dalia v. United States, a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that police could secretly break into an office to plant a bugging device and then return several weeks later to remove it.
In a dissent, Justice John Paul Stevens wrote: "Until Congress has stated otherwise, our duty to protect the rights of the individual should hold sway over the interest in more effective law enforcement."
The American Civil Liberties Union said Monday: "We encourage Congress, as it begins its review of the Patriot Act this week, to ask the Justice Department to fully explain and expand on (its) partial picture" of Section 213.
Martial Law 9/11 Rise of the Police State is now available! Visit our Martial Law movie section for complete info (click here)
http://www.infowars.com/
Welcome to The Alpha-Omega Report
An "Online" Magazine for News & Studies Related to Bible Prophecy Fulfillment
http://aoreport.com/
By FRANK DAVIES
Knight Ridder Newspapers
Posted on Tue, Apr. 05, 2005
WASHINGTON - Pledging conciliation with Congress, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales told senators Tuesday that he would accept some modifications to the USA Patriot Act, but he urged that all its major provisions be renewed to effectively fight terrorism.
"Thanks in part to the act, we have dismantled terrorist cells, disrupted terrorist plots and captured terrorists before they could strike," Gonzales told the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Acknowledging criticism from the right and left, Gonzales and FBI Director Robert Mueller said they wanted to assure Congress that the act's new search and surveillance powers had been used narrowly and not to monitor the reading habits or personal data of a broad range of people.
Gonzales also admitted that the Justice Department "took too long" to report to Congress on how the act had been used. He promised to "treat those who express concerns about the Patriot Act with respect and listen to their concerns with an open mind."
Several members of the committee said this conciliatory approach was in sharp contrast to John Ashcroft, Gonzales' predecessor, who refused to respond to requests for some records and once said that administration critics were indirectly helping terrorists.
"The attorney general has now announced that he too recognizes that our concerns are not so far-fetched," said Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., who cast the lone Senate vote against the act, which gave the FBI broad new police and surveillance powers. "I welcome this sea change in the administration's attitude."
The Justice Department also released new information Tuesday on how the act has been used. Perhaps the most controversial section - allowing searches of such personal information as medical records and book selections at public libraries - has been authorized only 35 times by a special surveillance court, Gonzales said.
He said no library, medical or gun-sale search orders had been sought under the Patriot Act, though Mueller said later that the FBI had obtained some library records by request, without using the act.
Gonzales also said he was willing to modify the law to make it clear that the subject of a secret search warrant can consult a lawyer and challenge the warrant in court.
The attorney general may not have much choice in being more cooperative. When Congress passed the far-reaching Patriot Act six weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, it included a "sunset" provision to force a more thorough review of the new police powers.
Gonzales is the point person seeking re-enactment of 16 provisions in the bill, which would otherwise expire by the end of this year. He will also appear Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee.
Senate Democrats aren't the only ones with qualms about the Patriot Act. Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., closely questioned Gonzales and said he'd like to tighten some of the "very broad language" that allows "sneak and peek" searches in which a person isn't told about a search until days or weeks later.
Gonzales said those special searches had been used 155 times.
The administration also must counter the coalition of groups seeking some revisions in the act, from the American Civil Liberties Union to the American Conservative Union and gun-rights groups.
Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, also announced they will introduce a bill to restrict some provisions, including library and sneak-and-peek searches.
But Gonzales and Mueller were adamant that the Patriot Act was crucial in the war on terrorism and that some of the criticism of the act resulted from misrepresentation and misunderstanding.
"Critics suggest some provisions lack significant safeguards on searches and wiretaps, but that concern ignores considerable safeguards and limitations that are firmly in place," Mueller said.
The FBI director also said he would seek broader administrative subpoena power in terrorism cases, similar to the authority the FBI has in drug trafficking and organized crime cases.
(Davies reports for The Miami Herald.)
==================
Patriot Act's secret searches used 108 times
http://www.infowars.com/articles/ps/patriot_act_secret_searches_used_108_times.htm
By Declan McCullagh
The section of the Patriot Act permitting police to surreptitiously enter and search a home or office without notifying the owner has reportedly been used 108 times during a 22-month period.
RELATED:
Record number of terror warrants approved
The U.S. Justice Department released the figures, which cover the period from October 2001 through April 2003, late Monday. The release comes as the Senate and House of Representatives are beginning a series of hearings this week to decide whether to renew portions of the controversial 2001 law that are set to expire on Dec. 31. The section of the law that allows the searches is not one of those set to expire, but data about the provision was released as part of the review.
"Delayed-notification search warrants are used in a wide spectrum of criminal investigations, including those involving terrorism and drugs," the Justice Department said in a statement. "Like any other search warrant, delayed-notification warrants under Section 213 may only be issued after showing probable cause and obtaining the express approval of a judge."
Section 213 of the Patriot Act authorizes so-called sneak-and-peek entries in cases where alerting someone that a surreptitious search took place may have an "adverse result" on a police investigation. Eventually the owner of the home or office is supposed to be notified, though the law says that deadline can be "extended" without limit if police make a good case for it.
Even though the Patriot Act was enacted as a response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Section 213's powers are not limited to investigations of terrorists and spies. Instead, sneak-and-peek searches may be used to investigate any federal felony or misdemeanor, from firearms violations to marijuana possession or copyright infringement.
Sneak-and-peek searches were used before the Patriot Act, but their legality was less clear then. One case involved the FBI surreptitiously entering the office of an alleged mobster to implant a key logger that recorded his PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) passphrase.
In a 1979 case called Dalia v. United States, a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that police could secretly break into an office to plant a bugging device and then return several weeks later to remove it.
In a dissent, Justice John Paul Stevens wrote: "Until Congress has stated otherwise, our duty to protect the rights of the individual should hold sway over the interest in more effective law enforcement."
The American Civil Liberties Union said Monday: "We encourage Congress, as it begins its review of the Patriot Act this week, to ask the Justice Department to fully explain and expand on (its) partial picture" of Section 213.
Martial Law 9/11 Rise of the Police State is now available! Visit our Martial Law movie section for complete info (click here)
http://www.infowars.com/
Welcome to The Alpha-Omega Report
An "Online" Magazine for News & Studies Related to Bible Prophecy Fulfillment
http://aoreport.com/
Main Page - Wednesday, 04/06/05
Message Board by American Patriot Friends Network [APFN]
