Posted on 11/30/2005 11:34:30 AM PST by JTN
The first time she was asked to show identification while riding the bus to work, Deborah Davis was so startled that she complied without thinking. But the more she thought about it, the less sense it made.
That's how Davis, a 50-year-old Colorado woman with four grown children and five grandchildren, ended up getting dragged off the bus by federal security officers, who handcuffed her, took her to their station, and cited her for two misdemeanors. Davis, who is scheduled to be arraigned on December 9, is risking 60 days in jail to show her fellow Americans that they don't need to blindly obey every dictate imposed in the name of security.
The public bus that Davis took to her office job in Lakewood, Colorado, crosses the Denver Federal Center, a 90-building complex occupied by agencies such as the U.S. Geological Survey, the Interior Department, the General Services Administration, and the Bureau of Land Management. "The facility is not high security," says Davis. "It's not Area 51 or NORAD or the Rocky Mountain Arsenal."
Guards nevertheless board buses as they enter the complex and demand IDs from passengers, whether or not they're getting off there. According to Davis, the guards barely glance at the IDs, let alone write down names or check them against a list.
"It's just an obedience test," says Gail Johnson, a lawyer recruited to represent Davis by the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado. "It does nothing for security."
Ahmad Taha, supervisory special agent with the Federal Protective Service, which is in charge of security at the Denver complex, said guards there have been checking the IDs of bus passengers since 9/11. He declined to explain the security rationale for this ritual or to comment on Davis' case.
After complying the first day she rode the bus, Davis began saying she had no ID and was not getting off at the Federal Center anyway. One Friday in late September, a guard told her she would not be permitted to ride the bus anymore without ID.
Before taking the stand that led to her arrest, Davis says, "I spent the weekend making sure that the Constitution hadn't changed since I was in the eighth grade, and it hadn't....We're not required to carry papers....We have a right to be anonymous."
Last year the Supreme Court ruled that a suspect in a criminal investigation can be required to give his name. But it has never upheld a policy of requiring ordinary citizens to carry ID and present it on demand. Davis "wasn't doing anything wrong," notes Johnson. "She wasn't suspected of doing anything wrong. She was a completely innocent person on the way to work."
Johnson plans to argue that the ID requirement violates Davis' First Amendment right to freedom of association, her Fourth Amendment right to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures, and her Fifth Amendment right not to be deprived of liberty (in this case, freedom of travel) without due process. A civil case raising similar issues in the context of airport ID checks is scheduled to be heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit the day before Davis' arraignment.
"Enough is enough," says Davis. "Our rights are being taken away a little piece at a time, and people are letting it happen."
Pulling out your driver's license may seem like a slight imposition, but the justification is even slighter. Since anyone can flash an ID, the procedure does not distinguish between people who pose a threat and people who don't. It does not even distinguish between people who are visiting the Federal Center and people who are merely riding a bus that happens to pass through it.
In a free country, citizens have no obligation to explain themselves to the government as they go about their daily lives. It's the government that owes us an explanation.
You were interested in the traffic tracking cell phone article. Thought you might want to see this.
And, pray tell, how do we know the difference?
Libertarian Ping.
more comment--
This is misleading because every small antiBush ACLU lawyer infested county in America will get you doing hard jail time or even virtualy shot if you do not show papers.
The ACLU will always get your papers. That is how they're powerful and becoming the big big brothers and then does facade hypocrite suits against a fed goc. like this.
I have qualms about siding with the ACLU on any issue...
But I agree with Ms. Davis. The perumptory flashing of ID's does nothing to enhance anyone's security.
Gee, after the Oklahoma bombing and 911, I guess the Feds can stop worrying huh?
/Sarcasm off
If they can't tell, then what are they checking for?
Easy! Two words - RACIAL PROFILING!
Sadly, I often don't post articles on subjects that I think are important that mention the ACLU, just because I know that so many people are going to have a visceral reaction to it.
She is entering a federal facility. The FedGuv has a right to restrict access and demand ID. If she does not like it, she can go around.
Opponents of tyrrany.
This is about compliance, not security.
The same thing customs agents are looking for: lack of eye contact, nervousness, something out of the ordinary, something that may set one person apart from the crowd. Plus presence equals deterrence.
Many of the same people who bitch and moan about these inconveniences are the same ones who will scream "Why didn't Bush do more" if a bomb goes off.
But, but, that would be DISCRIMINATION!!! We can't have that!!
/sarcasm
Sad indeed. Many righteous issues are hijacked by the left as liberal causes, when in truth they concern all Americans, regardless of party lines. As another poster states, we should be preventing dangerous people from getting into the country in the first place; not trying to sift through the masses and figure out who's who.
But I take issue with this claim: We have a right to be anonymous. That's exactly what all the illegal immigrant workers and illegal immigrant and felon voters and sleeper cell terrorists are relying on: "Nobody has a right to demand I prove who I really am unless I'm charged with a specific crime." As has been wisely said many times before, the Constitution is not a suicide pact. It's high time we got serious about developing a top-notch biometric national ID system. No papers to carry, just yourself.
Sorry folks the reason your bus is held up is because we have to check ID's as people get off the bus and not while they are approaching the Federal Building. We are sure you do not mind the inconvenience caused by one lady who wishes to maintain her privacy. (sarc)
Things might have changed since the early 80's, but I had a friend, Ed Lawson, who used to get busted in California all the time for refusing to produce an ID when demanded by the Police.
He was an African American with the matted hairstyle popular at the time, and I guess he could look a little intimidating. On Mondays, he would go walking in nice nieghborhoods and get himself picked up by the police, who would hold him until Wednesday. I worked with him on sound and lighting over the weekends. He had a regular schedule.
He was trying to bring a case to trial to challenge California's ID law. I don't know if he was ever successful, because he was still doing it when I left the state.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.