[IP] F.B.I., Using Patriot Act, Demands Library's Records
August 26, 2005
F.B.I., Using Patriot Act, Demands Library's Records
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
WASHINGTON, Aug. 25 - Using its expanded power under the
antiterrorism law known as the USA Patriot Act, the F.B.I. is
demanding library records from a Connecticut institution as part of
an intelligence investigation, the American Civil Liberties Union
said Thursday.
The demand is the first confirmed instance in which the Federal
Bureau of Investigation has used the law in this way, federal
officials and the A.C.L.U. said. The government's power to demand
access to library borrowing records and other material showing
reading habits has been the single most divisive issue in the debate
over whether Congress should extend key elements of the act after
this year.
Because of federal secrecy requirements, the A.C.L.U. said it was
barred from disclosing the identity of the institution or other main
details of the bureau's demand, but court papers indicate that the
target is a library in the Bridgeport area.
The A.C.L.U., a leading critic of the Bush administration over the
Patriot Act and its antiterrorism policies, brought a lawsuit on Aug.
9 in Federal District Court in Bridgeport on behalf of the
Connecticut institution. The suit was filed under seal, and names and
other information were redacted in a public version it released
Thursday.
The A.C.L.U. said it would seek an emergency order allowing it to
discuss details of the case publicly. A hearing has been set for
Wednesday in federal court in Bridgeport.
In the debate over the future of the antiterrorism law, the
administration has said that it has never used the so-called library
provision in the law, which falls under Section 215, to demand
records from libraries or booksellers.
The A.C.L.U. said that in the Connecticut case, the bureau was using
a separate investigative tool, a type of administrative subpoena
known as a national security letter, to get records related to
library patrons, reading materials and patrons' use of the Internet.
The bureau's power to use national security letters to demand records
without a judge's approval was expanded under the antiterrorism law.
Last year, a federal judge in Manhattan struck down part of the
subpoena provision as unconstitutional, in part because it allowed
for no judicial oversight, but the Justice Department is appealing
the ruling.
Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the A.C.L.U., said the
demand for the Connecticut library records "shows that our supposed
hysteria over the Patriot Act wasn't so hysterical after all."
"This is a prime example of the government using its Patriot Act
powers without any judicial oversight to get sensitive information on
law-abiding Americans," Mr. Romero said.
Officials at the Justice Department and the F.B.I. refused comment on
the issue because it involves pending litigation. But one government
official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the
litigation, cautioned against reading too much into the bureau's
demand for the records in Connecticut.
Because the law prevents public disclosure concerning such demands
for records, the official said: "Not all the facts have come out
here. But national security letters are a legitimate investigative
tool, and to draw conclusions without knowing what the underlying
facts are, people have to be careful about that."
The letter from the F.B.I., which was included in the lawsuit, said
the material being sought was needed as part of an investigation "to
protect against internal terrorism or clandestine intelligence
activities." The letter warned that the recipient was prohibited
"from disclosing to any person that the F.B.I. has sought or obtained
access to information or records under these provisions."
The lawsuit said the Connecticut organization, which is a member of
the American Library Association, "strictly guards the
confidentiality and privacy of its library and Internet records, and
believes it should not be forced to disclose such records without a
showing of compelling need and approval by a judge."
While the antiterrorism law is still awaiting final reauthorization
by Congress, both the Senate and the House moved last month to extend
at least temporarily the government's power to demand library records
in terrorism investigations.
Administration officials have repeatedly emphasized that they have no
interest in investigating the reading habits of law-abiding Americans.
But the administration has faced strong criticism from groups like
the American Library Association, which released a survey of its
members in June showing that law enforcement officials had contacted
libraries at least 200 times since 2001 with formal and informal
inquiries about their internal records.
Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company Home Privacy Policy Search
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