Patriot Act Pros And Cons

The Patriot Act, an act passed by Congress in 2001 that addressed the topic of privacy in terrorist or radical situations, is controversial in today's society. Although it helps with protection against terroristic events, The Patriot Act is not fair, nor is it constitutional, because it allows the government to intrude on citizens' privacy, it gives governmental individuals too much power, and because the act is invasive to the 4th amendment right. To further describe key points in the act, it states that it allows investigators to use the tools that were already available to investigate organized crime and drug trafficking, and it allows law enforcement officials to obtain a search warrant anywhere a terrorist-related activity occurred.

The Patriot Act allowed the government to conduct searches that it had either previously been unable to conduct or that had been far more difficult. Included in the bill was the ability for the government to conduct secret searches, to collect data on individuals held by third parties as well as the new “roving wiretaps” and “lone wolf provision.” Section 213 allowed for secret searches, also called “sneak and peak” warrants which let government officials search a home or building without giving the subject prior notice, something that had long been required under common law. Critics of the law say that if a property owner is not present or aware of a search, they cannot point out inconsistencies with a warrant, leaving officers with unchecked

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency both have a large part in enforcing and implementing the legislation because of their functions being so much related to the legislation. The legislation as a whole plays a larger part in the way that the agencies have implemented the legislation and their responses to more controversial parts of the legislation such as the “Authority for Delaying Notice of the Execution of a Warrant” found in section 213 of the Patriot Act of 2001 (Patriot Act of 2001). The Patriot Act of 2001 plays a major role in the numerous arenas of the two agencies because of the implementation as well as the suggested judicial implications of the law. The Patriot Act of 2001 as states in the article issued by the Department of Justice, “Patriot Act of

Another pro of FISA, and the applicable amendments that followed, is the ability for electronic surveillance to be conducted without a court order for a designated length of time to better facilitate collection and streamline the process under USC. 1802, Sec 102. There are, of course, steps required by high ranking officials, the President and Attorney General, which must be taken to conduct such surveillance without a court order. Also, the criteria to conduct the surveillance is restricted specifically to communications exclusively between foreign powers and must not include “substantial likelihood” that the surveillance will acquire communications pertaining to a United States Person. [4] While the appropriate legal process should always be followed, this provision is necessary at times to bypass the lengthy legal process for obtaining a court order when time restrictions apply.

Several acts severely infringe the civil liberties of Americans; for example, Title II of the act provides for enhanced surveillance procedures. Authority to intercept wire, oral, and electronic communications became expanded if these communications might be related to terrorism or computer fraud. There are 25 separate sections providing significant new authority for the government to monitor mail, e-mail, voice mail, and telephone and computer communications. Search warrants will be easier to obtain, and they will be broader in scope. Warrants will be valid for longer periods. The FBI can ask for a warrant requiring any tangible items which can include books, papers, records, documents, etc…(the warrant may be non-specific in nature). This is a direct violation of the Fourth Amendment rights of search and seizure.

Law enforcement utilizes the Patriot Act through enhance surveillance techniques and search warrant opportunities all of which are approved by the court system but not exactly “monitored.” Judges and magistrates within the court system deny bond, incarcerate, and hold hearings concerning liberties and collateral violations in the name of fighting terrorism. An excellent example of

All this power allows agencies like the FBI to wiretap cell phones, look at medical records, see internet search histories, as well as "any tangible thing. " Many critics argue that the collection of all this information can be done secretly and with very little oversight. The Patriot acts also allows for the detention of any persons even non U.S citizens without probable

After the 2001 September 11th attacks on the world trade center the nations homeland security policies had to be reinforced. The awkwardly titled so as to unite and Strengthening America Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (USA PATRIOT Act, or USAPA) presented a plenty of administrative changes which altogether expanded the reconnaissance and investigative forces of law authorization organizations in the United States. The Act did not, in any case, accommodate the arrangement of balanced governance that generally protects common freedoms despite such enactment. Authoritative recommendations in light of the terrorist assaults of September 11, 2001 were presented not exactly a week after the assaults. President Bush marked the last bill, the USA PATRIOT Act, into law on October 26, 2001. Despite the fact that the Act made critical corrections to more than 15 imperative statutes, it was presented with awesome flurry and went with little verbal confrontation, and without a House, Senate, or meeting report. Therefore, it needs foundation authoritative history that regularly reflectively gives important statutory understanding. The Act was a trade off form of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2001 (ATA), an expansive authoritative bundle planned to fortify the country 's protection against terrorism. The ATA contained a few procurements incomprehensibly growing the power of law authorization and knowledge organizations to screen private

Secret searches, also called sneak-and-peak searches, are authorized under Section 213 of the Patriot Act; this allows federal law enforcement agencies to delay giving notice when they conduct secret searches

Since the founding of the United States of America, freedom has been the basis of the governmental and ruling systems in place. Individual freedoms are protected in both the Bill of Rights and the rest of the Constitution, and Schwartz (2009) explains that ‘public liberty ultimately enhances collective rationality—it is a path to heightening our wisdom by increasing access to pertinent information and improving decision making’ (p. 409). However, there have been many times in history when the true freedom of citizens is called into question. There has always been controversy about how much power the government should have, who is keeping the government in check, and if citizens are properly informed about what their elected governed are doing. The passing of the Patriot Act in 2001 was no exception to this controversy. The

The government's success in preventing another catastrophic attack on the American homeland since September 11, 2001, would have been much more difficult, if not impossible, without the USA Patriot Act. The authorities Congress provided have substantially enhanced our ability to prevent, investigate, and prosecute acts of terror.

September 11, 2001 sparked many different feelings into the hearts of Americans. People sprang into action to seek revenge and protect America’s precious soils from another deadly attack by reinforcing America’s strength through her government. The men and women of Congress retaliated to the terrorist attacks by drafting and passing the USA PATRIOT Act on October 26, 2001, which stands for “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism.” The bill was moved through Congress with amazing speed and little hesitation. After the passing, the unsuspecting citizens of America were bombarded with many new rules and regulations that

Congress ushered in the Patriot Act by arming law enforcement with new tools to detect and prevent terrorism by expanding federal officials’ powers to keep tabs on our personal information, from credit card use to cell phone calls to car travel. It allows investigators to use the tools that were

The basis of the USA Patriot Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept

Ever since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and an area in Pennsylvania, in which nearly 3,000 helpless individuals were killed, the U.S. Congress began to pass legislation that would strengthen the United State’s counterterrorism efforts. Less than a month after the horrific attack, the National Security Agency (NSA) started a “special collection program” with intentions to track communications among suspected terrorists and Al Qaeda leaders. Then on October 4, 2001, President George W. Bush authorized the NSA to monitor domestic communications in order to track down suspected terrorists. Two problems shortly arose from Bush’s decision: the fact that his authorization to NSA was carried out in secret and also that monitoring the domestic communications was done without a warrant. This proved to be illegal since the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act states that the government is prohibited from eavesdropping inside the United States without first getting a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA court). In order to counteract the issues he had caused, on October 26, 2001 Bush signed the Patriot Act; a law that would expand the government’s electronic surveillance powers. After signing this law Bush stated, “The existing law was written in the era of rotary telephones. This new law that I sign today will allow surveillance of all communications used by terrorists, including emails, the