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Posted on 05/30/2004 12:05:02 AM PDT by JustPiper
Hope your son is ok.
Thanks for sharing your "red x". LOL
Random Searches On Boston Trains
BOSTON, June 8, 2004
(CBS/AP) Transit police will begin randomly stopping riders on Boston's subways and commuter trains next month to search their bags and packages, a procedure transportation officials say was largely prompted by the March 11 train bombings in Spain.
The new policy — the first in the United States — is set to be in place for July's Democratic National Convention in the city, transit Police Chief Joseph Carter told The Boston Globe newspaper for a story in Tuesday editions.
The program will include explosives-sniffing dogs and all 247 uniformed Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority police officers, he said.
"I have no trepidation about being first (in the nation with the policy)," Carter said. "I don't want to be the first to do an interview about having a serious incident that may have some terrorist indications to it. … We want to do this to encourage people to feel safe on the MBTA, to utilize public transportation."
The March bombings on commuter trains in Madrid, Spain, killed 191 people and were blamed on Islamic militants with possible links to al Qaeda.
Carter said MBTA has not announced the new policy formally because officials still are working out the details on how to balance security and privacy concerns.
The program, yet to be fully developed, is being planned in coordination with federal officials and with several other transit agencies in the United States and abroad, Carter said.
Last month, MBTA police announced the entire force has been receiving counterterrorism training that includes spotting suspicious behavior. MBTA police already can request to see the identification of passengers they perceive to be acting suspiciously.
Last month, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration unveiled a pilot program to screen the bags of all passengers at a single commuter rail station in the state of Maryland.
MBTA Deputy Police Chief John Martino, who is overseeing the development and implementation of the search policy, said police, sometimes accompanied by explosives-sniffing dogs, will randomly pick out riders for inspection throughout the transit system daily. He said the number of inspections would increase dramatically during the Democratic convention July 26-29.
Carol Rose, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, said that while she understands the need for security, the MBTA plan is deeply flawed and may violate the U.S. Constitution's ban on unreasonable search and seizure.
"The Fourth Amendment doesn't stop at your wrist when you carry a briefcase; it includes your bag," Rose said. "It either has to be truly random, or it has to have a root in a reasonable basis of suspicion."
"From Nazi Germany, to Stalinist Russia, to South Africa under apartheid, the phrase: 'Your papers, please' is alien to a free society," said John Reinstein, ACLU-Massachusetts legal director, in a statement.
Boston is expecting thousands of protesters at the convention. Four years ago, police departments in Los Angeles and Philadelphia were faulted for the way they treated demonstrators. The ACLU in Massachusetts has warned Boston police to respect protesters' rights.
Makes me wonder if our Homeland Security Dept. is really helping to coordinate all the information that they have on threats. Is this information being communicated to state and local authorities.
This is infuriating!
A little good news........
Special Forces Free Four Foreign Hostages in Iraq
Tue Jun 8, 2004 09:20 AM ET
MILAN, Italy (Reuters) - Special forces from the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq Tuesday freed three Italian hostages held for almost two months and a Pole abducted a week ago, authorities and the military said.
The three Italian hostages are in good physical condition, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said.
"They were freed about one and a half hours ago by coalition forces near Baghdad. There was no bloodshed. The boys are on their way to the airport now," Frattini said on state television.
He said no deal had been cut for the hostages' release.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5372191
Kudos to the Special Forces!!!
And continued prayers for all our men and women in the military.
"Diarra presented several forms of identification with conflicting names. Diarra's boarding pass said he was James Wood from New York City. His Texas identification said he was Yahkya Diarra from Houston but his New York license showed him again as James Wood.
"Then, officers found nearly $20,000 in Diarra's possession in $100 bills."
You work too hard!
I was just being a smart aleck. ;-)
All caught up and now I have to work.
Drat. Placemark.
Did you sign up for Promed?
You have Freep mail.
Is having fake IDs not illegal?
I have a dictophone and do transcription.
Careful what you wish for - I'll mail you a stack of tapes to transcribe LOL
http://1010wins.com/topstories/winstopstories_story_160073618.html
Seven Hurt In Bronx Chemical Exposure
Jun 8, 2004 7:34 am US/Eastern
(1010 WINS) (New York) -- Seven people have been hurt after being sprayed with an unknown chemical during a fight in the Bronx. Two men and five women suffered burns in the fight, which happened at about 5:30 last evening. They were taken to Jacobi Hospital.
One victim - an 18-year-old girl - is listed in serious condition.
Police arrested 25-year-old Tamika Worley and 33-year-old Isaac Copeland, both of the Bronx, on assault charges.
The subject of the dispute and the type of chemical used are under investigation.
>>>"It either has to be truly random, or it has to have a root in a reasonable basis of suspicion."
My my Carol Rose. Are you suggesting profiling???
I would think that the fake ID's, $20,000 in undocumented cash, gun "lighter" would at least keep this man in custody for a few more days, until they check-out his story. What is the purpose of asking for the public's help finding info. on this guy three days after having him in custody and AFTER releasing him?!. Keystone Cops comes to mind.
While they say that they let him go...they don't say if they allowed him to fly onto his destination in Houston. I also think that this may be a way for terrorists to "test" the screening process at airports, to see who and what "gets through"....my imagination at work again.
I did sign up for promed; but you still catch things I miss!
AND you have caught things my contacts have missed.
Why not? I'm willing.
LOL
They are learning, Zotted, before publishing.
Is there a Freeper on their team?
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