Posted on 02/17/2005 1:13:54 PM PST by hsmomx3
Fingerprinting Policies Condemned by Legislative District 22 Republicans; Mesa Denies Activities
One little thumb can open a mighty big can of worms. Make that a mighty big, constitutional can of worms.
The City of Yuma requires police officers to fingerprint persons stopped for petty violations – both civil and criminal. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office recently began instructing its deputies to do likewise.
All of which has come to the attention of the constitutionally-minded Legislative District 22 Republicans, who on Thursday night at a regular monthly meeting in Gilbert condemned those actions by resolution. According to the D22 GOP precinct committeemen, thumb prints for petty violations run counter to the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
The District 22 resolution also accuses the City of Mesa of doing the fingerprinting, as well. However, Tim Gaffney, public information officer for the Mesa Police Department, contacted The Arizona Conservative Feb. 14 to deny that.
The D22 resolution demanded the following: “We insist that this practice be eliminated immediately, the data compiled in this manner be destroyed within six months and the destruction be verified by an independent third party.”
H. Steven Johnson, of Mesa, read the proposed resolution Thursday. The resolution passed on a voice vote without a single voice of dissent. The third paragraph of the resolution stated the authors’ objection to fingerprinting:
“Whereas, the Fourteenth Amendment has been held to apply certain restrictions upon the States as well as the Federal Government, that among these are certain inalienable rights primarily contained in the First through the Eighth Amendments to the United States Constitution, including, but not limited to ‘the prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures (Fourth Amendment),’ and ‘the right to counsel (Sixth Amendment).”
The resolution went on to describe such actions as abrogation of the law and claimed that the stated intention of the sheriff of Maricopa County “is to use the seizure of these fingerprints to build a database in violation of the Fourth Amendment and the rights of privacy.” Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio was not mentioned by name in the resolution, penned by the same D22 Republicans who clashed with him last year during his run for re-election.
Resolution authors reasoned that the majority of Americans are confronted by law enforcement within a period of three years, insinuating that many Arizona citizens are likely to have their rights violated by the fingerprinting policy. Authors also claim that “fingerprinting does nothing to inhibit high-level identity theft involving credit fraud, bank fraud and other consumer fraud."
Passage of the resolution requires that the District 22 Republican Committee send a copy of the resolution to the Maricopa County Attorney, the Arizona Attorney General and the U.S. Department of Justice.
A longtime law enforcement officer who ran unsuccessfully for sheriff in Maricopa County last year, Dan Saban, of Mesa, spoke Thursday night in opposition to the fingerprinting.
“The problem I have with this policy is that when you have someone as irresponsible as Joe Arpaio, I have a problem with that,” Saban said. “This policy was nothing more than smoke and mirrors to deflect some of the bad publicity he has been getting. Doing this under the auspices of protecting you from identity theft is ludicrous.”
Saban said the lack of accountability of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office amounts to big brother oppressing the citizenry.
“This is not a good practice for what the outcome is,” Saban said.
Saban is planning to run for sheriff against Arpaio again in 2008. However, Maricopa County citizens are planning in March to begin a recall effort against Arpaio. The sheriff has made many enemies in his tenure, including the organization Mothers Against Arpaio, “a group formed by mothers and women whose loved ones and friends have been abused or neglected by Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his employees.” Last year, District 22 also went on record to endorse Saban in his bid for the sheriff’s office.
Arpaio responded by phoning D22 Chairman Bill Norton, resulting in further acrimony.
“He was quite threatening at times and continually referred to you PCs (precinct committeemen) and District 22 as 'a small, insignificant district,'" Norton said at the time. "I corrected him on his perception. He also is said to have told a reporter that we are just a group of 'wacko East Valley Mormons.' This morning at 7 a.m., KTAR (Radio, of Phoenix) did a short interview with me about the resolution. The producer of that show told me that Joe called him at his home to try and intimidate him into not airing the interview."
If Arpaio survives the recall effort, his time in office is likely to grow more and more rocky, due to worsening relationships with key constituencies and declining popularity.
I said yes, sure.
Upon opening the door he took it upon himself to adjust the seatbelt then look under the seats, in the map pockets, under the box of DVDs, and just about everywhere else in the back. I was not pleased. 10 seconds on the seatbelt and a 5 minute fishing trip.
Not like I look like a drug runner with a 2 year old in a seat in a 2004 Lincoln LS. Cops know the limits and are pushing hard right up to them. Winning the battle but losing the war.
I said yes, sure.
Upon opening the door he took it upon himself to adjust the seatbelt then look under the seats, in the map pockets, under the box of DVDs, and just about everywhere else in the back. I was not pleased. 10 seconds on the seatbelt and a 5 minute fishing trip.
Not like I look like a drug runner with a 2 year old in a seat in a 2004 Lincoln LS. Cops know the limits and are pushing hard right up to them. Winning the battle but losing the war.
Did you complain to his superiors? You should pitch a fit on this one. He gulled you bug time.
The AZ official is clearly right when he says this
arbitrary fingerprinting violates the Fourth Amendment.
If that isn't a form of "unreasonable search and seizure"
then I don't know what is! Further, the Amendment states
that only a warrant issued on "probable cause" with
specific objects mentioned can justify such a search.
In other words, the police are on "fishing expeditions".
Our liberties are not eroded by great and sensational
unconstitutional acts --- but incrementally by an array
of smaller infringements that in the aggregate end
individual freedom.
He knew exactly how to say it to sound like he was carrying on the conversation about the child seat but was really asking for the consent to go fishing.
He was trained that way so going to the superiors would have been for naught, I'm sure.
Gradually, more and more citizens will learn that cops are intentionally deceptive in this way, stop cooperating with them, and stop looking up to them.
I resent the police around here routinely asking where are you going and what have you been doing. Hasn't happened lately ,but was pulled over a number of times at 1 a.m. on my way home from work,probably because of a bored cops hope to get a dui.Drivng at or below the speed limit is good practice in deer country but the cops assume some nefarious reason. And I mean driving 35 on a winding road with very little or no traffic. Then the lights come up behind you ,and Officer Unfriendly starts the routine. Seems they never heard of security,maintenance,stockers, and others who works evenings and nights.
Yep.
Doing the devil's work ain't just for liberals any more.
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