Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 15 October 2004 — Page 2

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THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2004

COMMENTUY Patriot Act is decidedly unpatriotic

By FRAN QUIGLEY A few weeks ago, in the case of Doe and ACLU vs. Ashcroft, Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York emphatically agreed with a conclusion reached by a growing and bipartisan group of lawmakers and citizens: The USA Patriot Act goes too far. In response to a lawsuit brought on behalf of an Internet service provider by the American Civil Liberties Union, the judge blocked the U.S. Department of Justice from issuing National Security Letters, perhaps the most frightening component of the notorious Patriot Act. Saying that “democracy abhors undue secrecy," Judge Morrero ruled that the constitutional guarantees of free speech and freedom from unreasonable search and seizu e were violated by the Patriot Act provision giving the government unchecked authority to obtainsensitive customer records from Internet service providers and other businesses without judicial oversight. These companies could be ordered to provide their customers’ names, addresses and credit card data, along with details oftheir Internet use. This particular Patriot Act provision is worded so broadly that it could effectively be used to obtain the names of customers ofWeb sites such as Amazon.com or eBay, or a political organization’s membership list, or even the names of sources that a journalist has contacted by e-mail. Even worse, the law’s “gag order” provision means any business whose records are seized by the government is barred from disclosing to anyone that the search had occurred.

The government power to use National Security Letters was vastly expanded by the Patriot Act. Where once the government could use this extraordinary power only when the person targeted was thought to be a spy orterrorist, nowthe FBI can obtain information about anyone at all, as long as the FBI says it believes the records sought are related to foreign intelligence or a terrorism investigation. But, since no judge ever reviews the demand for private information, there is no guarantee that even that minimal requirement is met. Responses to a Freedom of Information Act request bytheACLU showed that the government may have used the broad powers of this statute hundreds of times since Sept. 11. It is important to realize that we can all be concerned about thfe Patriot Act and still be supportive oflaw enforcement officials. Federal agents help keep us and our families safe, sometimes at risk to their own safety, and we all should be grateful for their dedication. But, like all of us, federal officials can be wrong. Evidence of that fallibility can be found in the Evansville, Ind., case of Tarek Al-Basti and seven other Egyptian Americans, who were wrongfully arrested in the wake of Sept. 11, as well as recent wrongful terrorism allegations and arrests in cases from Florida to Oregon to Idaho. When mistakes are made by government officials invested with the awesome power to search our private records and make arrests, innocent lives can be forever harmed and the country’s core principle of freedom suffers a devastating blow. That is why the drafters of

the United States Constitution carefully created a democracy where no president or his police force has the ability to invade our privacy without obtaining approval from acourt. And that is why Judge Marrero struck down the Patriot Act’s effort to erase judicial review of government invasion into our privacy. This court victory is significant, but the struggle to defend the Constitution is far from won. Judge Marrero’s decision is likely to be appealed, and Republican leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives is in the midst of a disturbing pre-election attempt to expand the Patriot Act. There would be nothing less patriotic for Congress to do than to increase government’s unchecked spying powers. The Patriot Act is part of an ignoble, if understandable, American tradition of temporarily sacrificing civil liberties in a fearful response to threats to our national security. We did it with the Alien and Sedition. Acts in the early 19th century, the suspension of habeas corpus during the Civil War, the internment of JapaneseAmericans in World War II and the McCarthyism era of the Cold War. But all ofthose mistakes were eventually corrected when cooler heads prevailed, and we have reached that time of reflective wisdom in the aftermath of 9/11. As Judge Marrero’s decision shows, Congress made a mistake passing the first Patriot Act. It should not further tarnish the Framers’ legacy by compounding the error. Fran Quigley is the executive director of the Indiana Civil Liberties Union, www.iclu.org.

11*/ fill About love JAM FOR PEACE A BENEFIT FOR THE FAMILY OF BUTLER OFFICER JAMES L DAVIS

BMV

► Continued from Page 1 Other changes being made by the BMV Security: • New policy for interpreters and translators

Accountability: • Independent review of BMV/BMVC Operations • The BMV's investigation and security department will report directly to Commissioner DePrez

Customer Service:

• Postcard reminders to renew driver licenses • Quick quote estimates for vehicle titles and registration • Digitally certified driver records • Web site improvements • Accident cards for vehicle glove compartments • Partnership with other public agencies • Correspondence and telephone response • Liaison with the Hispanic/Latino community • A comprehensive, integrated computer system • New credit card machines in every branch

ately began pulling together a management team that I knew I could work with and that would be able to do the job that I knew needed to be done,” said DePrez. “I had done a risk assessment in February as to what the immediate urgent needs of the agency were and they seemed to be in the areas of accountability and security.” Two of the immediate steps DePrez took after assessing the security issues of the BMV was central verification process for immigration-related documents and Social Security verification in every branch that will allow quick, on-site verification of Social Security numbers. DePrez says that the central verification process was a huge step in preventing document fraud. “We brought in all of the foreign documents and they were copied in the branch,” she said. “We had a direct link with the citizenship and immigration service so that all foreign documents were verified true. That took out the guess work out of trying to determine out in the field whether a document was valid or not.” In terms of accountability, DePrez placed a stronger em-

phasis on personnel policies to help ensure that those dealing with customers’ records and money are honest and honor the rules and regulations of the BMV. New employees must submit to a comprehensive criminal background check and similar to state employees they must also report arrests and convictions that occur after hiring. “The commission passed two important policies; one was the arrest and conviction policy that also included infractions such as speeding tickets and the loss of your driver’s license. We wanted to ensure that our employees were of the highest caliber,” she said. “The second policy is a more complete background check for all employees. We were doing a limited criminal history and that limited history was only as complete as the information that has been submitted by the local courts throughout the state.” One of the important changes DePrez says dealing with customer service is the new schedule for all 163 full-service license branches statewide. The newTuesday through Saturday hours began Oct. 4 in response to the BMV’s many requests from customers. Branches will now be closed on Monday, which will allow more convenient hours for customers without increasing the total number of license branch hours and cost. Amy Hardman, a four-year assistant manager at the Ameriplex branch on the Southwestside of town says that the new hours help the customers as well as the employees. “All of the branches throughout the state are open on Saturday and that takes a lot of pressure off of those few that were open on Saturday,” she said. “It’s spreading the customers around evenly.” Hardman added, “A lot of the employees do not mind working the half day on Saturday because they still get their two days off, which is pretty good. The customers obviously think it’s great because that’s why we’re here, for them.” Hardman says that the more extensive employee background checks hasn’t influenced the branch and is happy about the changes being made. “I think a lot of the negative things that have happened in the BMV in the past are being fixed by the new policies that are going into effect,” she said. “It is saving a lot of time for us to be able to check Social Security numbers for our customers as well as our employees. It’s also saving a lot of money.”

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