I was just about to give up on finding anything to blog about when I came across this little decision out of the US Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. In George v. Rehiel et.al. Dkt.:11-4292 (3rd Cir. 2013)( a Civil Rights case brought under 42USC1983) an American college student of Middle Eastern Culture at a University in California was boarding a plane in Philadelphia (heading back to school) and under went an "administrative search" (which is a recognized "exception" to the 4th Amendment) at the boarding area. It is an everyday bother for airline passengers but it does keep us safer and it is usually minimally intrusive, that is until the Third Circuit decided to throw America's new obsession with paranoia into it.
During the search, the TSA employees (who seemingly have absolutely no training in law) found handwritten flash cards that included the Arabic/English words for everyday language as well as for some words that if SAID ALOUD, would trigger an arrest in an airport (words like Bomb, Terrorist, Explosion, Attack, Kill, Battle, To Wound, to Kidnap). Now the fact that he was a student and one might want to know these words if involved in Mid Eastern current events did not matter. That he wasn't speaking the words but that the cards were in his carry-on so he could study didn't matter either. That after finding the flashcards and swabbing everything around for explosives and finding zilch well that still did not matter. As far as the TSA was concerned these flashcards (and a treatise a college kid might read on the failures of American Interventionist Foreign Policy) required he be detained for a supervisor to question him AND for TSA to call the police.
The supervisor came and for 15 minutes more she stalled Mr. George in a TSA security room (which by the way he was not free to leave) asking inane questions such as:
Q: Do you know who is responsible for 9-11?
A: Osama Bin Laden
Q: Do you know what language he spoke?
A: Arabic
Q: Do you see why these (flash)Cards are suspicious????????????
WTF????? Really???? Needless to say Mr. George was arrested, cuffed, detained for 5 hours, and missed his flight. Yes, if you were wondering, Philadelphia is part of the United States of America...
Mr. George and his attorneys sued the TSA agents, the cops, and FBI agents (who after five hours arrived, questioned the kid another 30 minutes and determined that he was not a terror threat) for violating his civil rights: His rights under the Fourth Amendment, Free speech and further sued for false arrest false imprisonment etc.
The question before the court was: did the TSA agents act outside of their employment authority by detaining young Mr. George, and if so did they have a reason to know that acting that way was against an established rule supporting the rights to privacy and speech.
The court never reached the knowledge element because it ruled that given the "totality of circumstances here could cause a reasonable person to believe that the items George was carrying raised the possibility that he might pose a threat to airline security".
Re-read the quote from the decision that I highlighted above. Have you ever seen a more tepid comment?
"...could cause...to believe...possibility...might pose." Gee he could have been carrying a New York Times and all those words would be in it. It is indisputable he had the right to have those cards and that he had a right to have and read the book on the failure of American intervention in the Middle East. Does it really raise a right to detain someone for 30 minutes or even 5 minutes once they found he had no explosives or contraband on him? Do you know what it feels like to be detained at an airport in an tiny room that you cannot leave. They have your phone? You can't call out check email tell others what's up? WTF??? Then they called the cops who arrested him and held him handcuffed in a cell for up to five more hours!! The court held the cops arrested him on their own. In other words a cop came up and not on the say of the TSA he just decided to bust the kid for five hours without being asked because presumably he found probable cause to make an arrest!! Based on flashcards and a book? (In fairness to the court they did rule that you cannot arrest someone because of the books they read. Evidentially flashcards are far more dangerous...) The court held it was speculative that the TSA ordered the arrest. I am sorry but I don't see that at all, of course that is one of the myriad of reasons I will never be a judge. I cannot suspend my disbelief for a long enough period to excuse people when they act like idiots in the name of the USA.
I am accustomed to government paranoia. Look we are all gonna die someday but really can't we go as men and women and not as frightened sheep? Are these judges for real? Are they going to hide behind 9-11 to support clearly illegal conduct by federal agents for the rest of our lives?? Liberty does hang in the stakes. If the Courts will not rein in the government when it clearly goes beyond our ever more liberal rules for destroying our Constitution, then we are lost.
That the lead judge was a Clinton appointee not some Neo-con Bush appointee. So if you are learning Arabic, and studying Middle Eastern culture, you better watch out...you just gave your government the right to detain you based on what they unreasonably fear might be a possible preparation for an attack or maybe just a learning thing but they are really unsure but they don't need to be any more sure because that could cause them to not detain Osama bin Laden or the ENGLISHMAN who was the shoe bomber or THE LATINO that was an underwear bomber. If you understand any of that, you MAY qualify to be a Federal Judge...
Sad.
H/t: Justia (US Third Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries.) and Rueters.
*The title of this post paraphrased the questions but the quotes here are from the decision and are culled from plaintiff's complaint.)
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Friday, December 27, 2013
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Ripped From The Headlines
A few issues “Ripped From The Headlines.”
I. Credit Card Fraud.
From May It Please The Court.
we learn that cash register receipts may no longer display your entire credit card number. These receipts may only show THE LAST FOUR(4)DIGITS of the credit card number. They also may not include your card's expiration date. If they show more than that it is a violation of the Fair Faith and Credit Transaction Act and they can be in BIG TROUBLE!!
Why you may be asking? Because "penalties range up to $1,000 per incident, and the suits can be filed as class actions, multiplying the penalties dramatically."In other words vendors who are not in compliance as of January 2007 are at risk of lawsuits. Are you in compliance? Have you been a "victim" of a violation? Time to check out those receipts.
II. Dallas Tx. District Attorney Seems To Care About Innocents Being Convicted..
Now here is what appears to be a prosecutor with both an interest in justice and a brain. Rather than waste money from his budget trying to keep evidence secret and protect possibly faulty convictions, he is willing to open his files to the Texas Tech Law School Innocence Project. Now people who claim that the have been convicted of crimes wrongfully will have the chance to have their claims investigated by a private organization which can bring their findings to the DA’s office or to court. In the long run it will save his county money and do a service to the community (and to the wrongfully accused if any exist there.) Story here
HatTip: Crim Prof Blog.
III. Pace University Law School institutes a Return to Practice Program With The Westchester Women's Bar Association..
Interesting new program over at Pace Law School. It is designed to help Lawyer-Parents who are returning to the workforce to brush up on what they may have missed while performing familial duties. It will also be open to attorneys who have found other alternate career opportunities. I can foresee a day where a smart law school will open a program like this for disbarred and suspended attorney’s and it will be required as part of their application to be restored to practice. The course could have a heavy ethics concentration as well as small business skills building. The program is described as follows:
“’New Directions,’ set for a May 21 launch, is a two-semester certificate program of study and externship for attorneys who have temporarily left practice and now want to return. “ Click here to find a form to get more information.
IV. Politics and Prosecutors..
Over the last 2 months Eight (8) Federal prosecutors have been fired by the Bush Administration. Some suspected politics at work. In this articleit appears Senator Pete Dominici had it in for a guy he formerly supported because he wasn't indicting democrats fast enough. What ever the reason, Federal prosecutors, (US Attorneys) serve at the President's discretion. President Bush has a right to fire whomever he wants. What he does not have, however, is the right to fill the positions that open up with out the advice and consent of the Senate. Right now, he fills the spots with interim people who never get to a vote up or down in the Senate. That is both a dereliction of the Constitution and a petty way to run government. Worse than that, it appears that the senator and the President were trying to rig prosecutions for political reasons. This type of behavior calls into question the fairness of the prosecutor's function. It further indicts the entire criminal justice system. Congress should be looking into that as well as the clear violation of the spirit and possible the words of the Constitution.
V. How do Courts Work. .
Here is a quick piece on how courts are set up within the states and federal government. It explains jurisdiction and how to tell which court hears what type of case. It is a good teaching tool.
VI. A Little TOO Friendly Skies: Airline Employee Fondles Sleeping Passenger on Flight.
Seems a maintenance man working for Northwest airlines boarded a plane from Tacoma to Minneapolis. He then allegedly waited for a female passenger to fall asleep and while the passenger slept, he lifted her shirt in an attempt to fondle her. When she awoke from feeling the material of the shirt move, he got up from the seat next to her and went elsewhere in the plane. The passenger alerted an attendant and the FBI met the flight in Minneapolis. He is being held. Article here.
Ok that's it for now.
I. Credit Card Fraud.
From May It Please The Court.
we learn that cash register receipts may no longer display your entire credit card number. These receipts may only show THE LAST FOUR(4)DIGITS of the credit card number. They also may not include your card's expiration date. If they show more than that it is a violation of the Fair Faith and Credit Transaction Act and they can be in BIG TROUBLE!!
Why you may be asking? Because "penalties range up to $1,000 per incident, and the suits can be filed as class actions, multiplying the penalties dramatically."In other words vendors who are not in compliance as of January 2007 are at risk of lawsuits. Are you in compliance? Have you been a "victim" of a violation? Time to check out those receipts.
II. Dallas Tx. District Attorney Seems To Care About Innocents Being Convicted..
Now here is what appears to be a prosecutor with both an interest in justice and a brain. Rather than waste money from his budget trying to keep evidence secret and protect possibly faulty convictions, he is willing to open his files to the Texas Tech Law School Innocence Project. Now people who claim that the have been convicted of crimes wrongfully will have the chance to have their claims investigated by a private organization which can bring their findings to the DA’s office or to court. In the long run it will save his county money and do a service to the community (and to the wrongfully accused if any exist there.) Story here
HatTip: Crim Prof Blog.
III. Pace University Law School institutes a Return to Practice Program With The Westchester Women's Bar Association..
Interesting new program over at Pace Law School. It is designed to help Lawyer-Parents who are returning to the workforce to brush up on what they may have missed while performing familial duties. It will also be open to attorneys who have found other alternate career opportunities. I can foresee a day where a smart law school will open a program like this for disbarred and suspended attorney’s and it will be required as part of their application to be restored to practice. The course could have a heavy ethics concentration as well as small business skills building. The program is described as follows:
“’New Directions,’ set for a May 21 launch, is a two-semester certificate program of study and externship for attorneys who have temporarily left practice and now want to return. “ Click here to find a form to get more information.
IV. Politics and Prosecutors..
Over the last 2 months Eight (8) Federal prosecutors have been fired by the Bush Administration. Some suspected politics at work. In this articleit appears Senator Pete Dominici had it in for a guy he formerly supported because he wasn't indicting democrats fast enough. What ever the reason, Federal prosecutors, (US Attorneys) serve at the President's discretion. President Bush has a right to fire whomever he wants. What he does not have, however, is the right to fill the positions that open up with out the advice and consent of the Senate. Right now, he fills the spots with interim people who never get to a vote up or down in the Senate. That is both a dereliction of the Constitution and a petty way to run government. Worse than that, it appears that the senator and the President were trying to rig prosecutions for political reasons. This type of behavior calls into question the fairness of the prosecutor's function. It further indicts the entire criminal justice system. Congress should be looking into that as well as the clear violation of the spirit and possible the words of the Constitution.
V. How do Courts Work. .
Here is a quick piece on how courts are set up within the states and federal government. It explains jurisdiction and how to tell which court hears what type of case. It is a good teaching tool.
VI. A Little TOO Friendly Skies: Airline Employee Fondles Sleeping Passenger on Flight.
Seems a maintenance man working for Northwest airlines boarded a plane from Tacoma to Minneapolis. He then allegedly waited for a female passenger to fall asleep and while the passenger slept, he lifted her shirt in an attempt to fondle her. When she awoke from feeling the material of the shirt move, he got up from the seat next to her and went elsewhere in the plane. The passenger alerted an attendant and the FBI met the flight in Minneapolis. He is being held. Article here.
Ok that's it for now.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Joining The NARP: Keeping Railways Open To Passengers
I joined the National Association of Railway Passengers. I suppose my money will be spent fighting the money I send to the Cato Institute, but I really believe that funding the Nation's RailRoad System now is an investment in our future...yes I said future.
I know that people think that railway traffic is a thing of the past but I have to say that I would rather take an Acela Express to Washington DC than fly into Reagan National or (G-d forbid Dulles.) The Railroad is an inexpensive, profit making travel alternative for me.
Look it takes me 1 hour to get from my home on Long Island to either of the big airports closest to me. It takes the same time to get to Penn Station NYC by taking the Long Island Railroad or driving. I have to drive to the airport. I can work on the LIRR. I cannot work on the LIE. (That's the Long Island Expressway for the uninitiated. Alan King called it the Worlds longest parking lot...He was right)
I have to be to the airport at least an hour and if I really want to be safe two hours before flight time. By the time I get through the gate and to my gate, buy a coffee and find a place to open my laptop it can take almost an hour.
I also have to "strip" first to get past the metal detectors...not a pretty site.
At Penn station I have use of a nice lounge and I only have to be there a half hour before my scheduled departure.
On a flight to DC I cannot get up to use the restroom... or really for any other reason. I can roam the train if I want to. The train seats are spacious. I am a big guy. On the plane, I have to buy a second seat or talk my way into first class if I really want comfort. I have plenty of legroom and work space on the train. I have no legroom or work space on the plane.
On the train I have full Wi-fi connectivity for nearly the whole time, on the plane I have to shut off my Verizon WWAN device or take responsibility for a mid air disaster. On the train I even have a plug.
On the train I can sit at a table across from my colleagues. We can spread out like in the law school library. On the plane? No way.
BUT WHAT ABOUT TIME???? What about it? It takes the Acela about 2:45 to get from NY to Washington. I bill about 2 hours of that minimum. It is nearly always on time. The shuttle is 45 minutes and it always takes off late. There are almost always flight delays getting into NY this summer. I can't work while I lose and hour or two at the gate. From my house to my hotel in DC it is a 4 hour ordeal. I took the plane three times from Chicago to NY. Direct NON STOP FLIGHTS!!! Average time spent in travel from Home to hotel 9 hours. Why...Delays Laguardia, Delays O'Hare. Expressway (an oxymoron)delays both cities. If we had a Acela Express to Chicago, time home to hotel... 6 hours!!
Now unfortunately we do not have Acela Express service to Chicago or Pittsburg or anywhere not in the Northeast Corridor, but we should. We should be making the kind of financial commitment to rail travel that Europe has made because in the long run it will increase profits for small and even big business.
Rail travel is stress free (at least for me) and efficient. If we had begun proper funding of Rail travel 30 years ago as we should have, we could have a lot better travel at a fraction of the cost.
Now before anyone goes on to tell me that Acela fares rival plane fares, let me say that based on my hourly billing rate, I would rather pay the Acela fare, than ride the plane...FOR FREE!!!That is the difference. If you haven't taken a intercity railway in a while, and can take the Acela Express, try it out. You will never go back. Heck I once became retained in a case for in excess of One Hundred Thousand Dollars, because I was able to call the client from the train. He was so impressed that I called him while I was traveling. I couldn't have done that from 30,000 feet.
If you do not live in a city that has Acela Service you should be writing your congressman and screaming. As prices go up and service gets weaker(on the airlines,) those trains are gonna look a lot more sweeter... Ok I will stick to polemics and avoid poetry. You get on your Congressman and Senators and don't just ask them to save Amtrak but ask them to make it even better!
I know that people think that railway traffic is a thing of the past but I have to say that I would rather take an Acela Express to Washington DC than fly into Reagan National or (G-d forbid Dulles.) The Railroad is an inexpensive, profit making travel alternative for me.
Look it takes me 1 hour to get from my home on Long Island to either of the big airports closest to me. It takes the same time to get to Penn Station NYC by taking the Long Island Railroad or driving. I have to drive to the airport. I can work on the LIRR. I cannot work on the LIE. (That's the Long Island Expressway for the uninitiated. Alan King called it the Worlds longest parking lot...He was right)
I have to be to the airport at least an hour and if I really want to be safe two hours before flight time. By the time I get through the gate and to my gate, buy a coffee and find a place to open my laptop it can take almost an hour.
I also have to "strip" first to get past the metal detectors...not a pretty site.
At Penn station I have use of a nice lounge and I only have to be there a half hour before my scheduled departure.
On a flight to DC I cannot get up to use the restroom... or really for any other reason. I can roam the train if I want to. The train seats are spacious. I am a big guy. On the plane, I have to buy a second seat or talk my way into first class if I really want comfort. I have plenty of legroom and work space on the train. I have no legroom or work space on the plane.
On the train I have full Wi-fi connectivity for nearly the whole time, on the plane I have to shut off my Verizon WWAN device or take responsibility for a mid air disaster. On the train I even have a plug.
On the train I can sit at a table across from my colleagues. We can spread out like in the law school library. On the plane? No way.
BUT WHAT ABOUT TIME???? What about it? It takes the Acela about 2:45 to get from NY to Washington. I bill about 2 hours of that minimum. It is nearly always on time. The shuttle is 45 minutes and it always takes off late. There are almost always flight delays getting into NY this summer. I can't work while I lose and hour or two at the gate. From my house to my hotel in DC it is a 4 hour ordeal. I took the plane three times from Chicago to NY. Direct NON STOP FLIGHTS!!! Average time spent in travel from Home to hotel 9 hours. Why...Delays Laguardia, Delays O'Hare. Expressway (an oxymoron)delays both cities. If we had a Acela Express to Chicago, time home to hotel... 6 hours!!
Now unfortunately we do not have Acela Express service to Chicago or Pittsburg or anywhere not in the Northeast Corridor, but we should. We should be making the kind of financial commitment to rail travel that Europe has made because in the long run it will increase profits for small and even big business.
Rail travel is stress free (at least for me) and efficient. If we had begun proper funding of Rail travel 30 years ago as we should have, we could have a lot better travel at a fraction of the cost.
Now before anyone goes on to tell me that Acela fares rival plane fares, let me say that based on my hourly billing rate, I would rather pay the Acela fare, than ride the plane...FOR FREE!!!That is the difference. If you haven't taken a intercity railway in a while, and can take the Acela Express, try it out. You will never go back. Heck I once became retained in a case for in excess of One Hundred Thousand Dollars, because I was able to call the client from the train. He was so impressed that I called him while I was traveling. I couldn't have done that from 30,000 feet.
If you do not live in a city that has Acela Service you should be writing your congressman and screaming. As prices go up and service gets weaker(on the airlines,) those trains are gonna look a lot more sweeter... Ok I will stick to polemics and avoid poetry. You get on your Congressman and Senators and don't just ask them to save Amtrak but ask them to make it even better!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)