The Mountain View City Council and the Patriot Act

The Mountain View City Council decided on September 16 after a short discussion (there was a lengthy discussion at the September 2 meeting) unanimously to take a position opposing a number of elements of the federal USA PATRIOT Act as encroaching on the civil liberties of city residents and asking our congressional representatives to address the issues.

The staff report for the 9/16 meeting includes an excellent analysis of the controversial law by Stanford Law professor Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar.

The Council decided

to send a letter to the U.S. Attorney General and the members of the California Congressional delegation indicating opposition to the sections of the Patriot Act that are of particular concern to the City of Mountain View.
to direct Library personnel, City contractors and other City staff, as appropriate, not to voluntarily provide City records to Federal officials and to contact the City Attorney if asked to participate in such activities.
to direct the City Attorney to challenge any request for City staff or contractors to comply with certain provisions of the Act that appear to be in violation of Constitutional provisions regarding unreasonable searches and seizures.

Councilwoman Stasek proposed to direct the Mountain View Police Department to provide regular updates regarding the Department's participation in searches initiated by Federal law enforcement agencies. Police chief Scott Vermeer questioned whether the proposal would provide the Council with the information that it wished to focus on - searches enabled by the Patriot Act. The Council voted unanimously to require regular reports on federal searches involving "foreign counterintelligence." Stasek will work with staff to tailor additional requests - her prerogative as a Council member - to obtain more information from the police department.

The Justice Department has acknowledged that it has used its increased powers from the Patriot Act in cases having nothing to do with foreign counterintelligence or terrorism. Stasek is to be commended for pursuing the issue of how the government is using its powers in ways that affect the civil liberties of Mountain View residents.

Help increase the pressure on our congressional representatives to take action by writing to them.

Mountain View Voices for Peace has sent a letter to Anna Eshoo asking her to support the SAFE Act and other legislation to undo the worst attacks on civil liberties in the USA PATRIOT Act. You can see a copy here.

There are suggestions from Silicon Valley for Civil Rights for letters to Boxer and to Feinstein (and their postal addresses) as well.

Eshoo's postal address is in the MVVP letter. You can send her email using her Web site.

You can send email to Boxer from her Web site.

Email to Feinstein can be sent from her Web site.