Patriot Act Rules Stifle Dissent

[Triana]

The secrecy provisions of the USA Patriot Act have prevented the
American Civil Liberties Union from publicizing a lawsuit it filed three
weeks ago challenging the FBI's methods of obtaining many business records.
The ACLU was recently allowed to release a redacted version of the lawsuit
following extended negotiations with the Justice Department. "It is
remarkable that a gag provision in the Patriot Act kept the public in the
dark about the mere fact that a constitutional challenge had been filed in
court," says ACLU associate legal director Ann Beeson. "President Bush can
talk about extending the life of the Patriot Act, but the ACLU is gagged
from discussing details of our challenge to it." The crux of the ACLU's
case concerns a section of the Act that allows the FBI to request financial
records, telephone and e-mail logs, and other documents from businesses
without a warrant or judicial approval. Such requests are known as
"national security letters," and the FBI has issued scores of such letters
since late 2001. The ACLU complaint says that using national security
letters to force Internet service providers to turn over names, screen
names, e-mail addresses and other customer information without proper
notice to customers raises questions about the constitutionality of the
Patriot Act's legal underpinnings. (Washington Post 29 Apr 2004)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51423-2004Apr28.html