| June 29, 2004 Vol.5, No.13:
|
FBI Used Controversial Patriot Act Provision
The FBI applied to use a section of the USA Patriot Act less than a month after Attorney General John Ashcroft stated it had never been used, according to new documents. Section 215 allows the government to track the public's reading habits in bookstores and libraries and seize an organization's computers, files and "any material thing" as part of an ongoing investigation.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Freedom to Read Foundation submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request last October, regarding the government's use of the Patriot Act. After the FBI refused to release the documents through administrative mechanisms, a U.S. District Court judge overturned the FBI's decision to withhold the documents. Additional documents will be released over the course of the next month.
Among the records released are:
- An October 15, 2003 FBI memorandum indicating that the FBI submitted an application for an order under Section 215.
- An e-mail message acknowledging that Section 215 can be used to obtain physical objects such as apartment keys, in addition to records. The Attorney General previously acknowledged that Section 215 can be used to obtain computer files and even genetic information.
- An internal FBI memo, dated October 29, 2003, stating that Section 215 of the Patriot Act can be used to obtain information about innocent people.
Additional Resources:
Patriot FOIA page by ACLU.
"Ashcroft Declassifies Use of a Patriot Act Power" by OMB Watch.
Patriot Act resource page by OpenTheGovernment.org.