Patriot II Police State in HR2417

[tex]

Rep. Ron Paul/Rep Dennis Moore

Mr. Speaker, I rise with great concerns over the Intelligence Authorization Conference Report. I do not agree that Members of Congress should vote in favor of an authorization that most know almost nothing about--including the most basic issue of the level of funding.

What most concerns me about this conference report, though, is

something that should outrage every single American citizen. I am referring to the stealth addition of language drastically expanding FBI powers to secretly and without court order snoop into the business and financial transactions of American citizens. These expanded internal police powers will enable the FBI to demand transaction records from businesses, including auto dealers, travel agents, pawnbrokers and more, without the approval or knowledge of a judge or grand jury.

This was written into the bill at the 11th hour over the objections of mmbers of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which would normally have jurisdiction over the FBI.

The Judiciary Committee was frozen out of the process.

It appears we are witnessing a stealth enactment of the enormously unpopular "Patriot II" legislation that was first leaked several months ago. Perhaps the national outcry when a draft of the Patriot II act was leaked has led its supporters to enact it one piece at a time in secret. Whatever the case, this is outrageous and unacceptable. I urge each of my colleagues to join me in rejecting this bill and its incredibly dangerous expansion of Federal police powers.

I also have concerns about the rest of the bill. One of the few

things we do know about this final version is that we are authorizing even more than the president has requested for the intelligence community. The intelligence budget seems to grow every year, but we must ask what we are getting for our money. It is notoriously difficult to assess the successes of our intelligence apparatus, and perhaps it is unfair that we only hear about its failures and shortcomings.

However, we cannot help but be concerned over several such failures in recent years. Despite the tens of billions we spend on these myriad intelligence agencies, it is impossible to ignore the failure of our federal intelligence community to detect and prevent the September 11 attacks. Additionally, it is becoming increasingly obvious that our intelligence community failed completely to accurately assess the nature of the raqi threat. These are by any measure grave failures, costing us incalculably in human lives and treasure.

Yet from what little we can know about this bill, the solution is to fund more of the same.

I would hope that we might begin coming up with new approaches to our intelligence needs, perhaps returning to an emphasis on the proven value of human intelligence and expanded linguistic capabilities for our intelligence personnel.

I am also concerned that our scarce resources are again being

squandered pursuing a failed drug war in Colombia, as this bill

continues to fund our disastrous Colombia policy. Billions of dollars have been spent in Colombia to fight this drug war, yet more drugs than ever are being produced abroad and shipped into the United States-- ncluding a bumper crop of opium sent by our new allies in Afghanistan.

Evidence in South America suggests that any decrease in Colombian production of drugs for the US market has only resulted in increased production in neighboring countries. As I have stated repeatedly, the solution to the drug problem lies not in attacking the producers abroad or in creating a militarized police state to go after the consumers at home, but rather in taking a close look at our seemingly insatiable desire for these substances. Until that issue is addressed we will continue wasting billions of dollars in a losing battle.

In conclusion, I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in rejecting this dangerous and expensive bill.

____________________

Congressional Record: December 9, 2003 (Extensions)

Page E2491

CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2417, INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2004

______

speech of

HON. DENNIS MOORE

of kansas

in the house of representatives

Thursday, November 20, 2003

Mr. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to one provision of the conference report before us today, which causes me to vote against the entire measure.

This legislation authorizes classified amounts in fiscal year 2004

for 14 U.S. intelligence agencies and intelligence-related activities

of the U.S. government--including the CIA and the National Security Agency, as well as foreign intelligence activities of the Defense Department, the FBI, the State Department, the Homeland Security Department, and other agencies. H.R. 2417 covers CIA and general intelligence operations, including signals intelligence, clandestine human-intelligence programs and analysis, and covert action capabilities. It also authorizes covert action programs, research and development, and projects to improve information dissemination. All of these are important and vital programs, which I support.

I am voting against this measure today, however, to draw attention to a provision which I believe should have been the subject of more rigorous congressional analysis than merely an up-or-down vote as part of a larger conference agreement. This measure expands the definition of "financial institution" to provide enhanced authority for intelligence community collection activities designed to prevent, deter and disrupt terrorism and espionage directed against the United States and to enhance foreign intelligence efforts. Banks, credit unions and other financial institutions currently are required to provide certain financial data to investigators generally without a court order or grand jury subpoena. The conference agreement expands the list to include car dealers, pawnbrokers, travel agents, casinos and other businesses.

This provision allows the U.S. government to have, through use of "National Security Letters," greater access to a larger universe of information that goes beyond traditional financial records, but is nonetheless crucial in tracking terrorist finances or espionage

activities. Current law permits the FBI to use National Security

Letters to obtain financial records from defined financial institutions for foreign intelligence investigations. While not subject to court approval, the letters nonetheless have to be approved by a senior government official.

The PATRIOT Act earlier had altered the standard for financial records that could be subject to National Security Letters to include the records of someone "sought for" an investigation, not merely of the "target" of an investigation.

While this new provision of law included in the conference report

does not amend the PATRIOT Act, I agree with the six Senators who recently wrote to the Senate Intelligence Committee and asked them not to move ahead with such a significant expansion of the FBI's investigatory powers without further review. As they stated, public hearings, public debate and legislative protocol are essential in legislation involving the privacy rights of Americans. As a member of the House Financial Services Committee, I am concerned that these new provisions of law could be used to seize personal financial records that traditionally have been protected by financial privacy laws. The rush to judgment following the attacks of September 11, 2001, led to

the rapid enactment of the PATRIOT Act, a measure which has caused substantial concerns among many Americans who value our constitutionally-protected liberties. Now that we are able to legislate in this area with a lessened sense of urgency, I urge my colleagues to step back and return this provision of H.R. 2417 to committee, where it can undergo the rigors of the normal legislative process so that Congress, and all Americans, can pass an informed judgment upon its merit.

---------------------------------------------

Doctor vs. deputies: dispute over violent arrest

Deputies broke glass to get woman from truck; she says they beat her.

Dr. Ramona Miller shows injuries she says were incurred during an altercation with Camden County deputies Aug. 28, 2002.

Dr. Ramona Miller

Miller

The Greene County Medical Society, which is writing a letter of support for Miller, had an article about the 2002 incident on its Web site.

Greene County Medical Society Web Site

By Kathleen O'Dell

News-Leader Staff

A former Springfield physician who goes on trial Sept. 24 for driving offenses and resisting arrest in Camden County says the officers beat her the night of her arrest.

Dr. Ramona Miller believes the Aug. 28, 2002, incident was a revenge attack for helping a county jail inmate in 2001 and filing a medical affidavit alleging the jail had not been giving him proper care.

She said that during the arrest, an officer shattered her truck window and dragged her from the vehicle, threw her to the ground and taunted her, saying, "We'll get your ass." She said her hands were cuffed so tightly during six of her nearly 20 hours in a jail cell that it damaged the nerves in her wrists. The injury was so severe, she had to suspend her medical practice, which included doing minor surgery for St. John's Health System clinics.

In court records, however, Camden County officers say Miller was driving erratically, and became so irrational and combative during a traffic stop at 12:49 a.m. Aug. 28 near Lake Road 5-35 in Sunrise Beach that one officer had to break out her window, force her from her truck, place her on the ground and handcuff her before taking her to jail.

In her upcoming trial, which was moved to Lebanon in Laclede County, Miller faces charges of resisting arrest, failure to yield to an emergency vehicle and failure to drive on the right half of the roadway. Punishment for the misdemeanor charges can include fines of up to $1,000 and a jail sentence of up to one year.

Camden County Sheriff John Page said an internal review of the officers' actions concluded they used acceptable force on Miller after she refused to present her driver's license and get out of the truck.

A department captain and a patrol sergeant conducted the review, he said.

"We have a use-of-force policy: Only use what force is necessary to handle the situation, no more than necessary," Page said.

"After review, the force necessary was used to remove her from the vehicle," Page said. "I can't say we've got a policy on dealing with people failing to exit the vehicle because we've never had a person fail to exit a vehicle or refuse to show a driver's license — we've had people run from us.

"This was a bizarre situation for us," Page added.

Bryan Reid, training director of the Missouri Police Chiefs Association, said forced entry into a vehicle is an option in an age when officers have been shot and killed during traffic stops.

"I'd say it's probably becoming more common because of the nature of the crimes we're running into and the escalated alert on the side of officers' safety," Reid said.

No one — including Miller — asked him to conduct a formal investigation of the officers' actions, he added. Miller has not filed a civil lawsuit against the officers.

Miller did ask the Missouri Highway Patrol to investigate the incident, but in keeping with policy, it did not investigate because neither the Camden County sheriff nor the prosecutor requested it, Troop F Criminal Unit Capt. Ron Replogle wrote in a Feb. 4 letter to Miller.

When asked why the officers did not just write Miller a ticket and slip it through her window, he referred to her belligerence.

"A person must obey the officer as per state law," Page said. "I don't believe that that's an area we were willing to compromise on."

He added deputies also had to make her get out of the truck so they could tell whether she was intoxicated or drugged. He said they could not smell alcohol on her breath. She told them she had not been drinking but would not take a Breathalyzer test.

He could not address Miller's reports of injuries.

"She claims she has scrapes and bruises. They were not evident in our facility nor did she express any injuries to anyone to my knowledge."

Miller disagrees, saying she asked for and was refused medical attention in the jail cell.

Page also discounted Miller's allegations she was being harassed. In a busy tourist season around the lakes, Page said, "my guys have more than enough things going on that they do not need to be looking for someone to harass."

Camden County assistant prosecutor Brian Keedy said he would not comment on the case "other than the police used force. Whether it was excessive or not, that's probably for civil jury to decide down the road," he said.

Camden County Presiding Commissioner Carolyn Loraine said she didn't know about the case, adding, "I would certainly hope there would not be brutality or coercion or anything like that from his department."

'There was injustice'

Miller, an osteopathic physician, told her story in a court motion she filed asking for a delay so she could hire another attorney and prepare for trial. She said she wanted to tell her story because she is concerned that other physicians who attempt to treat Camden County inmates could be targeted in the future.

In her motion, she contended she had been "beaten, robbed, jailed, harassed and intimidated by law enforcement officers."

"I had no idea I was stepping on the sheriff's toes just by being a physician and doing my duty (treating the jail inmate)," Miller told the News-Leader.

Miller's case has caught the attention of the 430-member Greene County Medical Society, which is crafting a letter of support, said President Dr. Alan Clark. He worked for six years at St. John's with Miller.

This summer, the society's Web site featured an article, "Outrage in the Ozarks, GCMS physician member assaulted by law enforcement in nearby county."

"I'm convinced there was injustice here," Clark said.

Miller's claims

Miller said she was first summoned to the Camden County Correctional Center, the county jail, in May 2001 to examine a former patient. William Mason, who had a heart condition, was serving a three-year sentence on a felony statutory rape conviction.

She said in a medical affidavit after treatment that she found Mason suffering from increased chest pain, a new heart murmur, abnormal heartbeat, weight loss, a painful hernia and open skin sores.

Miller had him transferred that day to St. John's Regional Health Center in Springfield for a cardiac catheterization "... due to what appeared to be the extreme malfeasance and negligence by his jailers in ignoring the ordinary standard of care," she said in her court motion.

A jail employee told her Sheriff Page "was not going to be happy with her and her medical decision to transfer the patient to the hospital," according to her document.

When Miller returned to the jail two days later for a scheduled follow-up appointment, she was denied access because she did not have a physician's photo ID, court records show. She said she wasn't required to show any ID during her first visit.

"That was a little disturbing," she said. "Why did they not want me to go back in?"

Miller filed a medical affidavit detailing Mason's condition and her concerns about lapses in his medical care at the jail. The report is attached to Mason's petition for a writ of habeas corpus filed in U.S. District Court in Kansas City. Such a petition asks that an inmate be brought before the court, placing the burden on those detaining him to justify the detention. He complained of irregularities at the jail.

Miller believes her work at the jail sparked harassment by Camden County officers.

Night of the incident

At the time, Miller frequently drove from work in Springfield along Missouri 5 through Camden County to her home in Versailles, in Morgan County. She said she has a recognizable blue, half-ton truck.

On one occasion, Miller said a vehicle zoomed up behind her and tailgated so close she couldn't see the headlights. It then backed off for a while. After repeating the action several times, the car finally passed Miller; only then did she see it was a sheriff's department vehicle.

Then shortly before 1 a.m. on Aug. 28 last year, Miller said in her motion, she was driving home on the same route when she passed a parked sheriff's vehicle. Soon she noticed a vehicle zoom close behind her, then back off, shining high beams. The back-and-forth action continued for 10 miles, her motion states.

Just before the Morgan County line, the vehicle turned on its flashing lights, so she pulled over, Miller said in the court document.

"I didn't know what would happen next," Miller told the News-Leader. "I'm a female in a dark area; I'm not sure who this person is; I can't see the uniform — it puts you in a frame of mind that you're scared."

Conflicting accounts

Camden County Deputy Chris Moehle gives a different account in a court affidavit.

Moehle said he was traveling north on Missouri 5 when he saw a vehicle traveling 70 mph in a 50 mph zone. He followed the vehicle, noticing the driver would slow down to 25 mph in a 55 mph zone and then exceed the speed limit. The vehicle continued erratically, swerving out of its lane and then drastically dropping below the speed limit.

Near Lake Road 5-36, he activated his emergency equipment to stop the vehicle for erratic driving, according to his affidavit. He said the driver began to stop, then returned to the highway and traveled north for about one-half mile until it stopped north of Lake Road 5-35.

When she pulled over, Miller called a friend on her cell phone and asked her to call 911 and Morgan County officials. She also asked her friend to activate a telephone tape recorder she maintains for patient calls at home.

Most of the incident was captured on tape, Miller said.

Women are encouraged to take precautions on traffic stops, said Reid, with the Missouri Police Chiefs Association. It is permissible to continue driving at a moderate speed for a short, reasonable distance to a lighted area or one with people. It is also acceptable to make a 911 cell phone call to verify the traffic stop, but advisable to roll down the window a bit and alert the officer, Reid said.

Page said his officers typically run the plates of a vehicle, then activate the lights and sirens in an area conducive or safe for a stop.

He said since that stretch of Missouri 5 has no shoulders, the officer waited to activate his lights until he got to a safer stretch, which happened to be inside the Sunrise Beach city limits.

Miller said in her motion she became more fearful on the dark stretch of road when a man approached her vehicle, shined a light in her face and addressed her by name, according to her motion. He asked her to roll down her window and turn off her cell phone.

Miller said she had the window one-third down, kept the cell phone on and asked why the man stopped her. The man, who later identified himself as Deputy Moehle, didn't answer her, she said in the motion.

Moehle's affidavit contradicts that, saying he gave his name and asked her to present her driver's license. She said through the window she couldn't be sure he was a deputy, so he provided his serial number, sheriff's commission, and finally called for a supervisor to come and vouch for him, the court document says.

When Cpl. K. Bart Sims arrived and Miller eventually lowered the window, she stuck out her license but jerked it back, according to Moehle's affidavit.

Miller denies that, saying she jerked her hand back because Sims grabbed it.

When Miller refused Sims' order to leave the truck, he told her she was under arrest, that she was resisting arrest and told Moehle to open the passenger door with an unlocking device, Moehle's affidavit says. It further says she grabbed the device, so Sims broke the driver's side window with a flashlight.

Miller's motion says glass shattered over her, the driver's side door was ripped open, and Sims grabbed and jerked her left arm.

Moehle's affidavit continues, "We then physically attempted to get her out of the vehicle, and she resisted by gripping the steering wheel. We finally managed to get her out of the vehicle and she became combative so we placed her on the ground.

"Upon handcuffing Miller we helped her back up and she became combative again. She was trying to throw us off balance with her body weight. We once again placed her on the ground. After the second struggle I escorted her to my patrol car and placed her in the back seat."

Sims' affidavit doesn't mention that Miller — 5 feet, 8 inches tall and 110 pounds — tried to throw them off-balance. His statement says that once Miller was upright again, Moehle noticed something in her hands and asked her what it was. She pulled away from him, so they placed her back on the ground until they determined it was a wallet.

Moehle's own account doesn't include the wallet detail.

Miller's injuries

Miller's motion describes a different arrest scene. She said as she tried to release her seat belt, "Sims kicked her left leg so severely that even though she had not been released from her seat belt, her body was jerked into a head-first position as she was yanked and dragged from the car."

An officer threw her against her vehicle, then Sims "rode her about 8 to 10 feet, drilling her into the gravel, face first, with his full body weight landing on top of her," Miller said in her motion. While on the ground, handcuffed, the motion states, "Sims then began searching Dr. Miller's pockets, but only searched into one pocket and then rubbed her between her legs well beyond what it would take to search for objects.

"At this point, Sims started hovering over Dr. Miller, pointing down at her and yelling that 'We'll get your ass,' and other such degrading and humiliating statements," Miller's motion states.

Her affidavit also contends Sims said he wanted to make sure she would have a criminal record that would follow her the rest of her life.

The document also lists allegations of abuse: the officers clubbed her hands and right arm; they lifted and carried her by the handcuffs to the officer's vehicle; they placed her still cuffed in an isolated cell; and they denied medical care when her hands became numb. Her request to see a judge was also ignored, she said.

Miller, who said she last got a traffic ticket 17 years ago, was released on a $5,000 bond.

After her release, Miller sought treatment at St. John's Regional Health Center. During the struggle, she said she suffered a broken rib, twisted left wrist, bruises on her hip and across her body, and cuts and scrapes.

She said hospital officials alerted the Springfield Police Department, which asked the Missouri Highway Patrol to help by videotaping Miller's statement and injuries.

Miller's attorney Chet Pleban said he is still trying to obtain evidence from Camden County officials in building her defense for the Sept. 24 trial.

[Larry]

Is there some kind of link you're trying to draw between these stories?

[tex]

Growing police power and the abuse of that power.

Don't get me wrong; I respect the men in blue. They put their lives on the line for us every day and without them we would have anarchy in the streets. I do wonder at times who is policing the police? They are only human after all, susceptible to the same frailties as the rest of us. I cringe at the thought of their ever broadening powers being used to exact revenge, as it appears above, dispensing there own brand of justice at the end of a nightstick.

[Larry]

Best observation I'd ever heard about abuse of power:

When I lived in DC, I listened to Braden and Buchannen every afternoon on WRC radio. (You could claim they were the forerunners of 'confrontational' political talk: One liberal and one conservative, both well-respected columnists, both with White House experience. I learned a lot from that show, because both kept the other honest: If one had a statistic, the other knew which (sometimes false) assumptions went into that statistic.)

The subject came up of Nixon's "enemies list".

Buchannen (who'd worked under Nixon) stated that the media had blown that whole list out of proportion in an effort to make Nixon look bad. That the list wasn't that of a mafia don taking out contracts on people, but was simply a collection of people that the White House thought "had it in" for the White House. The list, he said, was simply issued as a warning to staffers, that, if they were speaking to someone on this list, they should be carefull to speak accurately, because the folks on this list would take a mis-statement and try to use it against the White House.

Tom Braden's response was that that explanation sounded really nice and reasonable in the abstract, but let's see what happens if we get more specific. He pointed out that "I was on that list for seven years. And my income taxes were audited for every one of those seven years."