A Draft Resolution
City of Paterson, NJ Resolution
Submitted January 23, 2004
City of Paterson City Council Bill of Rights Resolution #.xxx)
Adopted by the Council on xxxxxx. xxxx, 2004
Resolution calling upon federal, state and local officials, and upon The City of
Paterson agencies and institutions, to affirm and uphold civil rights and civil
liberties.
By Council Members _________
Whereas, The protection of civil rights and civil liberties is essential to
the well being of a free and democratic society; and
Whereas, The City of Paterson has a diverse population, including
immigrants and students, whose contributions to the city are vital to its
economy, culture and civic character; and
Whereas, The members of the Council of the City of Paterson believe that
there is no inherent conflict between national security and the preservation of
liberty -- Americans can be both safe and free; and
Whereas, Government security measures that undermine fundamental rights do
damage to the American institutions and values that the residents of the City of
Paterson hold dear; and
Whereas, Federal, state and local governments should protect the public from
terrorist attacks, such as those that occurred on September 11, 2001, but should
do so in a rational and deliberative fashion in order to ensure that security
measures enhance the public safety without impairing constitutional rights or
infringing on civil liberties; and
Whereas, Certain federal policies adopted since September 11, 2001,
including certain provisions in the USA PATRIOT Act (Public Law 107-56) and
related federal actions unduly infringe upon fundamental rights and liberties;
and
Whereas, These new policies include the power to authorize the indefinite
incarceration of non-citizens based on mere suspicion of terrorist activity, and
the indefinite incarceration of citizens designated as “enemy combatants”
without access to counsel or meaningful recourse to the federal courts;
limitations on the traditional authority of federal courts to curb law
enforcement abuse of electronic surveillance in anti-terrorism investigations
and ordinary criminal investigations; the expansion of the authority of federal
agents to conduct so-called “sneak and peek” or “black bag” searches, in which
the subject of the search warrant is unaware that his property has been
searched; grants to law enforcement and intelligence agencies broad access to
personal medical, financial, library and education records with little if any
judicial oversight; and
Whereas, These new policies may undermine trust between immigrant
communities and the government, and in particular, pose a threat to the civil
rights and liberties of the residents of our city who are or who appear to be
Arab, Muslim or of South Asian descent; and
Whereas, The federal government has drafted new legislation entitled the
Domestic Security Enhancement Act (DSEA) (also known as PATRIOT II), which may
further compromise constitutional rights and our government’s unique system of
checks and balances; and
Whereas, Three states and more than 250 communities throughout the country
have enacted resolutions that reaffirm support for civil rights and civil
liberties and that demand accountability from law enforcement agencies regarding
the exercise of the extraordinary new powers referred to herein; now, therefore,
be it
Resolved, That the City Council of Paterson calls upon federal, state and
local officials, and upon City agencies and institutions, to affirm and protect
civil rights and civil liberties; and be it further
Resolved, That the Council of Paterson affirms its strong support for the
rights of immigrants and opposes measures that single out individuals for legal
scrutiny or enforcement activity based primarily upon their country of origin;
and be it further
Resolved, That the Council of the City of Paterson affirms its commitment to
uphold civil rights and civil liberties, and therefore expresses its opposition
to:
(a) investigation of individuals or groups of individuals based on their
participation in activities protected by the First Amendment, such as political
advocacy or the practice of a religion, without reasonable suspicion of criminal
activity unrelated to the activity protected by the First Amendment;
(b) racial, religious or ethnic profiling;
(c) participation in the enforcement of federal immigration laws, except as
directed by City of Paterson City Executive Order xxxx;
(d) deployment of biometric identification technology that is unreliable;
(e) establishment of a network of general surveillance cameras unless such a
network is subject to regulations that provide reasonable and effective
protections of privacy and due process rights of individuals who appear in
recorded material; and
(f) “sneak and peek” searches, pursuant to Section 213 of the Patriot Act,
unless the search is authorized and conducted in accordance with City of
Paterson State law; and
(g) establishment or maintenance of an anti-terrorism reporting system that
creates an electronic record on an individual unless subject to regulations that
provide for the protection of individuals subject to unfounded reports; and be
it further
Resolved, That the Council of the City of Paterson opposes requests by
federal authorities that, if granted, would cause agencies of the City of
Paterson to exercise powers or cooperate in the exercise of powers in apparent
violation of any city ordinance or the laws or Constitution of this State or the
United States; and be it further
Resolved, That the Council of the City of Paterson urges each of the City’s
public libraries to inform library patrons that Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT
Act gives the government new authority to monitor book-borrowing and Internet
activities without patrons’ knowledge or consent and that this law prohibits
library staff from informing patrons if federal agents have requested patrons’
library records; and be it further
Resolved, That in order to assess the effect of antiterrorism initiatives on
the residents of the of City of Paterson, the City Council calls upon federal
officials to make periodic reports, consistent with the Freedom of Information
Act, that include:
(a) the number of City of Paterson City residents who have been arrested or
otherwise detained by federal authorities as a result of terrorism
investigations since September 11, 2001;
(b) the number of search warrants that have been executed in the City of
Paterson without notice to the subject of the warrant pursuant to section 213 of
the USA PATRIOT Act;
(c) the number of electronic surveillance actions carried out in the of City
of Paterson under powers granted in the USA PATRIOT Act;
(d) the number of investigations undertaken by federal authorities to
monitor political meetings, religious gatherings or other activities protected
by the First Amendment within the of City of Paterson;
(e) the number of times education records have been obtained from public
schools and institutions of higher learning in the of City of Paterson under
section 507 of the USA PATRIOT Act;
(f) the number of times library records have been obtained from libraries in
the City of Paterson under section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act; and
(g) the number of times that records of the books purchased by store patrons
have been obtained from bookstores in the City of City of Paterson under section
215 of the USA PATRIOT Act; and be it further
Resolved, That the Council of the City of Paterson calls upon our United
States Representatives and Senators to monitor the implementation of the USA
PATRIOT Act and related federal actions and to actively work for the repeal of
those sections of the USA PATRIOT Act and related federal actions that unduly
infringe upon fundamental rights and liberties as recognized in the U.S.
Constitution and its Amendments; and be it further
Resolved, That the Council of the City of Paterson calls upon our United
States Representatives and Senators to take a lead in Congressional action to
prohibit passage of the Domestic Security Enhancement Act, known as “Patriot
II”; and be it further
Resolved, That the Council of the City of Paterson calls upon Governor
James McGreevey, all State Senators and State Assemblymen to ensure that state
anti-terrorism laws and policies are implemented in a manner that does not
infringe upon fundamental rights and liberties as recognized in the U.S.
Constitution and its Amendments and in the New Jersey State Constitution.
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