HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-05 Protect Civil Liberties RESOLUTION NO. 2003- O ~'-
RESOLUTION TO PROTECT CIVIL LIBERTIES
Recitals:
A. The City of Ashland is proud of its commitment to protect the civil rights and
liberties of its residents and believes that the preservation of civil rights and liberties is
essential to the well-being of a democratic society; and
B. The City of Ashland believes that there is no inherent conflict between national
security and the preservation of liberty and that government can protect public safety
without impairing civil rights and liberties; and
C. The new federal anti-terrorism policies may pose a threat to the civil rights and
liberties of all persons within the City of Ashland, and a particular threat to those who are
immigrants, Muslims, or people of Arab or South Asian descent; and
D. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution specifies that no law be
made "respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or
abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances"; and
E. The Fourth Amendment declares that "the right of the people to be secure in
their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,
shall not be violated; and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported
by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the
persons or things to be seized"; and
F. The Fifth Amendment states that no person "shall be compelled in any criminal
case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without
due process of law"; and
G. The Sixth Amendment guarantees defendants "the right to a speedy and
public trial, by an impartial jury .... and to be informed of the nature and cause of the
accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process
for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his
defense"; and
H. The Eighth Amendment states that "excessive bail shall not be required, nor
excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted"; and
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I. The Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the government from denying "to any
person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"; and
J. Federal policies adopted since September 11, 2001, including provisions in the
USA PATRIOT Act (Public Law 107-56) and related executive orders, regulations and
actions may threaten fundamental civil rights and liberties by being interpreted as:
1. Authorizing the indefinite incarceration or deportation of non-citizens
even if they have not committed a crime (USA PATRIOT Act, Sections 411 and
412);
2. Limiting judicial supervision and civil liberties protections in the
application of telephone and internet surveillance (USA PATRIOT Act, Section
216);
3. Expanding the authority of federal agents to conduct secret searches so
that the subject of a search warrant is unaware that the property has been
searched (USA PATRIOT Act, Section 213);
4. Granting law enforcement and intelligence agencies broad access to
sensitive medical, mental health, library, business, financial, educational, and
other records about individuals without first showing probable cause or evidence
of a crime (USA PATRIOT Act, Sections 215,218,219, 358,507, and 508);
5. Limiting constitutionally protected speech through unchecked authority
of the Attorney General and the Secretary of State to designate domestic groups
as "terrorist organizations" using overbroad definitions of "terrorism" (USA
PATRIOT Act, Section 411 );
6. Authorizing the indefinite incarceration of citizens designated by the
President as "enemy combatants" without access to counsel or meaningful
recourse to the federal courts (see Hamdi and Padilla cases);
7. Authorizing the FBI to conduct surveillance of religious services, internet
chatrooms, political demonstrations, and other public meetings without evidence
that a crime has been or may be committed (Attorney General's guidelines and
procedures relating to criminal investigations and national security, issued May
30, 2002);
8. Limiting the disclosure of public documents and records under the Freedom
of Information Act ("Memorandum for Heads of all Federal Departments and
Agencies," Attorney General John Ashcroft, Oct. 12, 2001 );
9. Permitting wiretapping of conversations between federal prisoners and
their lawyers (28 CFR 501.3); and
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10. Establishing secret military tribunals for terrorism suspects (Military
Order, Nov. 13, 2001).
THE CITY OF ASHLAND RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. The City of Ashland affirms its commitment to preserve the constitutional
rights of all persons within the City of Ashland, including equal protection of the laws,
freedom of speech, religion, and assembly, freedom from unreasonable search and
seizure, and privacy, without regard to race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, age,
sexual orientation, gender, economic status, marital status, citizenship status, or
disability.
Section 2. The City of Ashland directs the Ashland Police Department:
A. To request written assurance from the applicable federal authority, when an
individual in the custody of the City of Ashland who is not a member of the U.S. military
forces is to be placed in federal custody under the authority of the USA PATRIOT Act,
that the individual will not be subjected to military detention, secret detention, secret
immigration proceedings, or detention without access to counsel, and to refrain from
assisting the federal authority in obtaining custody of that individual absent such
assurance;
B. To continue to determine particularized suspicion of criminal activity before
engaging in surveillance of individuals or groups, and to refrain, whether acting alone or
with other law enforcement agencies, from collecting or maintaining information about
the political, religious or social views, associations or activities of any individual or group
unless such information directly relates to a criminal investigation (in accordance with
ORS 181.575);
C. To continue to carry out investigations without regard to race, ethnicity, national
origin, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender, economic status, marital status,
citizenship status or disability, except when such factors are part of the description of a
particular suspect, or an element of a state crime as provided in the Oregon Revised
Statutes, and to refrain from participating in enforcement of federal immigration laws,
which are the responsibility of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (in accordance
with ORS 181.850);
D. Except as provided in ORS 133.619, 133.724, and 133.726, to continue to
provide prior or simultaneous notice of the execution of a search warrant within the City
of Ashland to the person whose property is the subject of such a warrant, and to refrain
from participating in a joint search with any law enforcement agency where prior notice
has not been given to the subject pursuant to section 213 of the USA PATRIOT Act; and
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E. To refrain from undertaking or participating in any federal clandestine program
such as the Terrorism Information and Prevention System (TIPS), which encourages
members of the general public to spy on their neighbors, colleagues or customers, while
continuing to participate in programs such as Amber Alert which depend on widespread
dissemination to the public of information relevant to specific criminal activity.
Section 3. The City of Ashland requests that the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Office of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Oregon State Police, and any other federal, state or
local law enforcement office having relevant information, report annually to the Ashland
City Council the extent and manner in which they have acted within the City of Ashland
under the USA PATRIOT Act and new Executive Orders, including but not limited to
disclosing:
A. The names of all residents of the City of Ashland who have been arrested or
otherwise detained by federal authorities as a result of terrorism investigations since
September 11,2001; the location of each detainee; the circumstances that led to each
detention; the charges, if any, lodged against each detainee; and the name of counsel, if
any, representing each detainee;
B. The number of search warrants that have been executed in the City of Ashland
without prior notice to the subject of the warrant pursuant to section 213 of the USA
PATRIOT Act;
C. The extent of electronic surveillance carried out in the City of Ashland under
the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act or powers granted in the USA PATRIOT Act;
D. The extent to which federal authorities are monitoring political meetings,
religious gatherings, or other activities protected by the First Amendment within the City
of Ashland;
E. The number of times education records have been obtained from public
schools and institutions of higher learning in the City of Ashland under section 507 of the
USA PATRIOT Act;
F. The number of times library records have been obtained from libraries within
the City of Ashland under section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act; and
G. The number of times that records of book purchases have been obtained from
bookstores within the City of Ashland under section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act.
Section 4. The City Administrator is directed to transmit a copy of this resolution to
Oregon's elected officials in Congress, to the Governor and to the members of the
Legislature representing Ashland, to President George Bush, to Attorney General John
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Ashcroft, to Jackson County and the Jackson County Library, School District #5 and
Southern Oregon University.
Section 5. This resolution takes effect upon signing by the Mayor.
This resolution was read by title only in accordance with Ashland Municipal Code
§2.04.090 duly PASSED and ADOPTED this 18th day of February, 2003.
Barbara Christensen, City Recorder
SIGNED and APPROVED this /~' day of /~, 2003.
~'~(~~ ~ John Mor~son, Acting Mayor
Paul Nolte, City Attorney
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