Posted on 03/21/2006 7:20:40 PM PST by Jay777
The American Civil Liberties Union is renewing its efforts to pry loose secret data about individuals and organizations that local governments consider potential terrorist threats.
After litigating the issue for nearly two years, the group's New Jersey chapter is filing requests under the state's Open Public Records Act, seeking information contained on applications for federal anti-terror funding. The applications list up to 15 "potential threat elements" _ individuals or groups that could be considered potential terrorist threats.
The ACLU is seeking the disclosure of the names of the individuals or groups, or failing that, the criteria used to select them for inclusion on the list.
"Sadly, we know that the federal government has recently spied on or targeted organizations, such as the Quakers and pro-peace groups, not because they pose a threat but rather due to their political beliefs," said Edward Barocas, the ACLU's legal director. "We want to make sure that our own New Jersey government officials are not doing likewise."
It's not the first time the group has sought the information. It filed an initial request with 50 New Jersey municipalities in April 2004.
Most responded that they had not filed such documents, but some claimed the records were exempt from disclosure on security grounds, or that the state Attorney General's Office had ordered them not to make the data public.
After the ACLU sued the Attorney General's Office, it said it had not instructed anyone to withhold the information.
That led the ACLU to send new requests for the information to nine municipalities: Edison, Linden, Middletown, Mount Laurel, Newark, Parsippany, Trenton, Wayne and West New York.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsday.com ...
The enemies of this nation don't really require individuals within our government to do their spying for them, they have the ACLU. Whenever those tin foil hat wearing imbeciles catch a rumor in the air, they file Freedom of Information Act documents to convince some chowder headed judge that the people's right to know trumps national security.
Bump
Heh, I'm getting worked up on it Lobo. There will be a post by midnight.
Did you get the animals fed?
All is happy and down for the night. ;)
Waht's the worry ACLU???? You still have the #1 position on the list.
What's the worry ACLU???? You still have the #1 position on the list.
The ACLU would be #1 on my list.
Well those "Friends" don't read the Constitution very closely. The national organization has declared that "Right of the People" means "power of the states", at least in Amendment II. For some reason they don't read those same words "right of the people" to have anything to do with the states when reading Amendment IV.
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