Nobody likes lawyers until they need one. This is especially true of criminal
defense lawyers. I’ve seen the most suburban, conservative people
turn into bleeding heart liberals the moment they (or one of their kids)
get arrested by the police. In other words, when someone else’s liberties
are taken, it is an acceptable infringement for purposes of fighting crime
and enforcing punishment.
But, what happens when, in the name of the “War on Terror”, all
of us are at risk of curtailed liberties as citizens? With the images
of 9/11 still fresh in our minds and psyche, we likely are willing to
sacrifice some of our liberties for greater national security.
What if you learned that your local police department entered and searched
your home without a warrant, without your consent, and without your knowledge?
In the name of our country’s welfare, government agents possess greater
berth to do what they want.
Within 5 weeks of 9/11, Congress passed the 342 page Patriot Act. It amended
15 statutes and gave much more latitude to state and federal police officers
to employ wiretaps on our phones, made it easier to secure and use search
warrants, and increased the scope of governmental subpoenas to appear
before court.
Search warrants used to have to be served immediately on the person to
be searched. Not under the Patriot Act. Credit card information, bank
account numbers, and information concerning computer usage can now be
obtained by our local authorities without a court order. Internet service
providers must comply with certain requests by the government without
the need of a court order.
American’s privacy has shrunk exponentially since 9/11. Not all of
it bad. But, anytime the government’s power usurps those rights preserved
to its citizens for 225 years is a bad thing. For all of us. Getting the
toothpaste back in the tube is not easy. It may not even be possible.
What about folks who are lawfully in the U.S. but born in another country.
I’m not talking about the foreigners who are here illegally, committing
crimes, siphoning government resources and other xenophobic news headlines.
I am referring to the first generation immigrants, small business owners,
family-centric, tax-paying, hard working, and industrious men and women
who are here for the same reason our ancestors came here — to better
their lives and those of their children. For a decade these individuals
have been under the watchful gaze of the government. We don’t hear
about the innocent immigrants held on alleged immigration violations,
innocent people jailed as “material witnesses”, American citizens
unilaterally labeled as “enemy combatants” and imprisoned without
being charged with a crime, given a public hearing or afforded an opportunity
to confront their accusers. These are also known as important constitutional rights.
How do you, as an American, feel about secret trials, nameless incarceration
facilities, and the inability of people to consult with legal counsel
while being detained? Guilty or innocent, all of us understand the vital
role lawyers play when one is accused of a crime. Deprivation of this
right rolls back
centuries of Anglo-American legal philosophy.
Americans, all of us, should be hard wired for protecting the fundamental
fairness and principles living in the United States Constitution. It seems
to me that the past decade has resulted in our collective sense of fairness
to be tilted in favor of unprecedented governmental intrustion. Is it
time to wake up from this stupor and start questioning the tactics of
our empowered leaders? Or do we just wait? If we wait, are we only waiting
for an infringement on one of us? I’ll tell you this much. If we wait
that long, it’s going to be too late. Our government’s probing
eyes and tentacles will be too far entrenched into our daily lives.
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