Reply #62: Oh, it has been abused at least once already [View All]

[tom_paine]

http://www.populist.com/03.11.edit.html

Note the OHS was used to track the aircraft of Democratic Legislators using PATRIOT provisions.

That's at least one incidence you don't know of. I wonder how many others are out there?

As to the "Supreme Court" ruling, scroll down on the list below to the heading "Searches Incident to Arrest for Minor Offenses"

http://www.radford.edu/~jcall/VACP/2002VACP.htm

There's much more on all this that I don't have time to gather for you.

And I strongly disagree that the unPA was "smoke and mirrors"

Sneak & Peek?

The right to access ANY record at ANY time without probable cause or a judge's signature?

The right of the Executive Branch to define people as "terrorists" using a (deliberate, IMHO) broadly worded definition that could apply to virtually anyone.

Even IF the unPA hasn't yet been abused, as a cop I am sure you are well aware of the very human tendency to cut corners, to take advantages and the necessity of explicitly having checks on bad conduct rather than handing out unchecked carte blanche and relying on People's Good Nature (which I am sure your job brings you with in contact every day) to keep them from violating the law.