Why Pass Civil Liberties Resolution

Why Las Cruces should pass a CIVIL LIBERTIES RESOLUTION

Letter by David Boje October 16, 2003; Updated Oct 24 2003

PRESS RELEASE by PeaceAware 23 Oct 2003 - Meeting with Mayor Mattiace - Mayor and head of ACLU agree to put on Las Cruces Town Hall meeting. Mayor says PeaceAware's 400 signatures not enough to put item on agenda of City Council' only petitions with 4,000 signatures are discussed in this sity. Press here for Press Release

Go direct to NEW Proposed Resolution Wording; Print your own copy to collect signatures - GOAL 4,000

It is time for Las Cruces City Council and Dona Ana County Commissioners to pass a Civil Liberties Resolution in our community. On October 9th, Grant County Commissioners unanimously passed their resolution against the U.S.A. PATRIOT act (See EPIC, 2003 for copy of the act). They called for greater protection of citizens' civil liberties.

Grant County joined Rio Arriba county, the New Mexico Municipal League, and the cities of Las Vegas, Santa Fe, Socorro, Aztec, Farmington, Taos, Albuquerque --- and approved Civil Liberties protection resolutions in New Mexico.

Source

Conservative and liberal New Mexico cities and counties seek protection for their citizens against the the U.S.A. PATRIOT (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism). The U.S.A. PATRIOT act expands government authority to put wiretaps in our homes, search our computers, induce libraries and bookstores to report on our reading choices, and carry out other acts of covert surveillance. The right and the left believe that some parts of the act take away freedoms of law-abiding citizens.

As U.S.A. PATRIOT Act Turns Two, Civil Liberties Resolutions Reached 200 communities, October 26th marks 2 years since it was made law of the land.

. According to Bill of Rights Defense Committee, "The movement of cities and towns opposing the Patriot Act and other repressive measures enacted since September 11, 2001, has gathered momentum in recent months. On October 21, the number of local and state governments to have passed resolutions and ordinances opposing the Act reached 200, and the total population of those communities topped 25.5 million. Among the recent additions are ordinances passed by the City of Council of Huntington, West Virginia, and the County Commission of Idaho County. Hundreds more resolutions are in progress. " (See Chart provided by Bill of Rights Defense Committee).

“Conservatives" for example, "have good cause to worry that even membership in organizations such as Operation Rescue or property rights and gun owner groups could be defined by an unfriendly administration as belonging to groups engaged in domestic terrorism,” warns Steve Lilienthal, a policy analyst with the Free Congress Foundation (NewsMax, August 2003).

According to Constitutional Scholars this act allows for secret searches and seizures, gives government access to our personal medical, financial, library, and education records, and allows for wiretap and email monitoring without judicial oversight. This is why 186 cities and counties have instructed their local police, libraries, and others to not engage in secret surveillance actions of their citizens.

36% of the citizens of New Mexico are protected by cities or counties that have passed Civil Liberties resolutions protecting them against the abusive power of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act. New Mexico has a population of 1,855,059 (as of 2002 #1), of which 676,316 citizens have protection of their Civil Liberties.The Breakdown of the city and county populations who have a CIVIL LIBERTIES RESOLUTION PASSED is as follows:

1 Albuquerque city 463,874 (#1)
2 Santa Fe city 65,127 (#1)
3. Las Vegas city 14,565 (#2)
4. Socorro city 8,877 (#3)
5. Aztec city 6,378 (#4)
6. Farmington city 40,563
7. Taos city 4,700 (#5)
8 Grant county 31,002 (#6)
9 Rio Arriba county 41,190 (#7)

TOTAL: 676,316 citizens of New Mexico whose Civil Liberties are protected by local resolutions.

Las Cruces has a population of 75,015, and is the second largest city in New Mexico. Las Cruces can play a pivotal role in the state of New Mexico. We at PeaceAware, after obtaining 400 paper signed petition signatures and another 133 electronic signors, ask that the Las Cruces City Council put the following resolution on their agenda for discussion:

Resolved: The Las Cruces City Council affirms its belief in the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights and states that the people of Las Cruces are protected by these mandates in peace time as in war time. (see the complete petition and please print your own petition and obtain signatures).

It is time for Las Cruces to join 186 other cities across America who as of October 11, 2003 have passed civil liberties protection resolutions. Mayor Mattiace of Las Cruces agreed on October 15th 2003 to meet with us about putting this item on the City's agenda.

There is growing concern in our community that the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act is not only eroding our civil liberties, but putting this country in a cold war McCarthyism mentality. The bill is 342 pages long and amends 15 federal statues; Six Constitutional amendments are threatened by this act:

First Amendment - no law be made "respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances;"
Fourth Amendment - "the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized;"
Fifth Amendment - no person "shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself;"
Sixth Amendment - guarantees defendants "the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense;"
Eighth Amendment - "excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted;"
Fourteenth Amendment - prohibits the government from denying "to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws;"

See Baker & Gregware (2003), two New Mexico State University professors or Cyber law (2003) for an analysis of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act. For example, "Prior to the passage of USAPA, government access to stored email communications was governed by the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (28 USC §2703) and government access to stored voice mail communications was governed by the federal wiretap statute (18 USC §2510(1))." And “today,” reports Representative Sanders (2003), “many librarians fear that their patrons have already begun to self-censor their library use due to fear of government surveillance.” Libraries in many counties are posting signs:

U.S.A. PATRIOT act "prohibits library workers from informing you if federal agents have obtained records about you... Questions about this policy," patrons are told, "should be directed to Attorney General John Ashcroft, Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. 20530" (Egelko & Gaura, 2003).

Under the U.S.A. PATRIOT act (Sec. 501, p. 38) the FBI can search and make seizure of book (or other) records by obtaining a warrant instead of a subpoena: ‘‘… under guidelines approved by the Attorney General under Executive Order 12333.” That order was issued Dec 4th 1981 by then-President Reagan. This means legal proceedings for obtaining warrants are sealed, so there is no way for you to determine if government surveillance of your library (or other) records is an appropriate use of power.
Under the U.S.A. PATRIOT act (Sec. 501: pp. 37-38), the FBI may “…make an application for an order requiring the production of any tangible things (including books, records, papers, documents, and other items) for an investigation to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities …” This means the FBI may obtain any and all physical or electronic records relating to library books borrowed, as well as your use of computer systems for searches, or e-mail.
Under the U.S.A. PATRIOT act (Sec. 215: pp. 38-39), ‘‘No person shall disclose to any other person (other than those persons necessary to produce the tangible things under this section) that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has sought or obtained tangible things under this section.” This means that library workers are not allowed to tell you about an investigation. See More on how libraries and patrons can protect themselves against U.S.A. PATRIOT act.

In reviewing the Bill of Rights Defense Committee (2003) analysis of provisions of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act that threaten our civil liberties, I put together a summary table of several major sections:

Table 1 - Statutes of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act that threaten Civil Liberties - adapted from Rights Defense Committee (2003)

Title/Provision	What it Changes	How it can threaten Civil Liberties
Section 215	Gives FBI records from bookstores and libraries that person suspected of terrorism has purchased or read, or his or her activities on library's computer. Places gag order to prevent anyone from disclosing that they have been ordered to produce such documents	Threat to Free Speech and rights to read, reommend, or discuss book or write an email Denies booksellers and library personnel Free Speech right to tell patrons that their reading is being monitored
Section 218	Amends Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, so FBI does not have to show 'probable cause' or show 'probable crime' before making secret searches or surveillance	Eliminates judicial supervision or need for warrant or probable cause when "foreign intelligence" is claimed
Section 213	Government can secretly search your home using an indefinitely delayed notification procedure	Changes the "knock and announce" policy where a warrant is reviewed by the occupant of the address.
Section 412	Gives Attorney General powers to certify immigrants as risks.	Reduces previous standard from "probable cause," deprives liberty without due process of law, accused is not confronted with cause or witnesses, accused does not have right to Counsel; deportation without due process

Our local banks, bookstores, libraries, and mortgage companies are affected by this act. For example:

When the account representative started asking me questions like "How much do you expect to deposit each month?" and "How many wire transfers do you expect to make each month?" the red flags started to go off in my head. I said, "I don't recall being asked these questions two years ago when i opened my current account." She replied, "We are required by law now to ask these questions and get answers for every new account. If we don't get the answers the account does not get opened." And then she added, "This is part of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act." (#8).

Las Cruces can join the 200 local cities and counties across the United States that are protecting the Civil Liberties of its citizens. The ACLU's July 3 report says "more than 16 million people in 26 states have passed resolutions" resisting the U.S.A. PATRIOT act (#9). NRA and Gun Owners of America are also concerned that law-abiding citizens are victimized by unconstitutional law enforcement powers contrary to the 2nd Ammendment like having their guns confiscated or being put on a no-fly secret list, just because they they checked out a book called, the "Shooters Bible" or entered the word "gun" in their Google search engine.

I call upon the people of Las Cruces to ask city council members and the Mayor to protect our Civil Liberties.

Sincerely,

David Boje, Ph.D., co-organizer PeaceAware

Resources

Baker, Nancy (Dept. of Government) Peter Gregware (Dept. of Criminal Justice) (2003). "USA Patriot Act infringes on guaranteed rights." Round-Up of New Mexico State Univeristy. October 23. http://www.roundupnews.com/news/536817.html?mkey=49552

Bill of Rights Defense Committee (2003) A Guide to provisions of the USA PATRIOT act and Federal Executive Orders that threaten civil liberties. Excellent analysis of each section of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act revealing what impact it has upon Civil Liberties in America. http://www.bordc.org/Repeal.pdf

Boje, D. M. (2003). How libraries and patrons can protect themselves against U.S.A. PATRIOT act.

Channel 7 News (2003). based on AP report about Grant County passing the Civil Liberties protection resolution: http://www.thenewmexicochannel.com/news/2543996/detail.html

Cyber Law (2003) analysis of U.S.A. PATRIOT act; documentation of specific provisions changed concerning email and voice mail see http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/privacy/Introduction%20to%20Module%20V.htm

Egelko, Bob & Maria Alicia Gaura (2003) March 10 San Francisco Gate.com Libraries post PATRIOT act warnings. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/03/10/MN14634.DTL

EPIC - Electronic Privacy Information Center (2003) pdf copy of U.S.A. PATRIOT act http://www.epic.org/privacy/terrorism/hr3162.pdf

Freedom to Read analysis of U.S.A PATRIOT act http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/readers_rights/announce.html

Global Dialog (2003). NM page on passed Civil Liberties resolutions - http://www.global-dialog.org/

Gun Owners Alliance (2003) Analysis of impact of U.S.A. PATRIOT act from NRA perspective http://www.gunownersalliance.com/Patriot_Act-01.htm

PeaceAware of New Mexico - See http://peaceaware.com/documents/proposed_las_cruces_resolution.htm for a history of the various resolutions we have introduced in Las Cruces

PeaceAware on line Internet Petition http://peaceaware.com/documents/proposed_las_cruces_resolution.htm has 133 signors; There is another 400 signors to the paper petition

Potterville Civil Liberties Protection resolution http://www.indybay.org/news/2003/09/1644844.php

Roswell Radio (2003). Grant Count http://www.roswellradio.org/cgi-bin/news.cgi?detail=650

Sanders, Bernie (2003) 24 Sept – PATRIOT act overreaches -Yahoo News on line lko & Gaura, http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=710&ncid=710&e=2&u=/usatoday/20030923/pl_usatoday/11865150

Santa Fe (2003). Civil Liberties Resolution http://www.global-dialog.org/mvd/wSF.Resolution.final.html

SUGGESTED WORDING OF LAS CRUCES RESOLUTION: Print your own copy to collect signatures - GOAL 4,000 signatures

A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LAS CRUCES, NEW MEXICO, TO UPHOLD THE HUMAN RIGHTS AND CIVIL LIBERTIES OF THE PEOPLE OF LAS CRUCES

WHEREAS, the City of Las Cruces fully supports the Constitution of the United States and its amendments, particularly the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment, and;

WHEREAS, the fundamental human rights and civil liberties guaranteed in the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New Mexico are essential to the well-being of the citizens and community of Las Cruces, and;

WHEREAS, several laws and orders enacted at the state and Federal level, including several provisions of the U.S.A. PATRIOT act, threaten these fundamental rights and liberties.

NOW THEREFORE, THE LAS CRUCES CITY COUNCIL DOES HEREBY RESOLVE:

Section 1. The City of Las Cruces is committed to upholding the human rights of all persons in Las Cruces, including United States citizens and citizens of other nations, and the free exercise and enjoyment of any and all rights and privileges secured by the constitutions of the United States of America and the State of New Mexico.

Section 2. The City Council of the City of Las Cruces calls upon all City officials and employees to respect the human rights and civil liberties of all members of this community, including those who are citizens of other nations.

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