Letters to the Editor

This letter is associated with the following article:
In an alarming case, U.S. attorneys exploited post-9/11 counterterrorism policies to pursue and prosecute an environmental activist.
  • @Saleem Government credibility in criminal prosecutions

    Whatever the particulars of the feds behavior investigating this case, I think we may agree that the government has undermined its credibility in regards to the rule of law in criminal investigations.

    The feds basically want it both ways. They want to secretly monitor all the information on the internet and not tell us how they use it. Then they want to turn around and claim they followed proper rules in investigating cases. Particularly in "terror" cases, it is entirely reasonable to assume that they are lying or obfuscating about their evidence and methods, since secrecy about sources and methods is part of the overall anti-terror strategy. A good way to coverup secret methods is to find the same information through a legitimate source.

    It is an incredible affront to civil liberties to define as terrorism crimes committed by citizens for political reasons. And that includes crimes against abortion clinics or environmental targets or white supremacy or what have you. Yes the feds should go after arson done for any reason. But the "terror" logic just applies Gitmo jurisprudence to US citizens.