Brighton Board Wants Patriot Act Fixed

Brighton Town Council Passes Resolution Upholding Rights and Liberties In Response to Flawed Patriot Act Provisions and FBI Abuse of Power <!--break--> Rochester, NY— In response to concern about flaws in the Patriot Act and recent revelations of FBI abuse of Patriot Act powers, the Brighton Town Council, in a vote of 5-0, today approved a resolution upholding the Bill of Rights and Constitution and protecting the rights of Brighton residents from anti-terrorism measures that the Council believes go too far. Brighton is the first community in the country to pass an anti-Patriot Act resolution challenging National Security Letters (NSLs), which were recently revealed to be overused and abused by the FBI. Brighton also joins 409 municipalities to have passed resolutions against the Patriot Act, according to the Bill of Rights Defense Committee in Northampton, MA , which tracks the resolutions and encourages a national debate on threats to civil liberties from the Patriot Act and other post-September 11th anti-terrorism measures. The Rochester Civil Liberties Coalition (RCLC) was founded by Lee Price of Fairport, NY to encourage local governments in Monroe County to pass anti-Patriot resolutions during the reauthorization process of the USA Patriot Act. “Rochester City Council’s resolution last year was our first success”, he said. ACLU legal counsel, Scott Forsyth, worked with the town of Brighton, a suburb of Rochester, to craft a resolution to address Patriot Act threats to civil liberties, specifically the still-flawed Provision Section 215 and NSL provisions. Nancy Braiman, a coordinator for the RCLC, called the Brighton vote a vote for the Bill of Rights. Ms. Braiman coordinated media coverage, lobbying, and other community events to build public support to adopt the measure. After a year of lobbying, Ms. Braiman and the RCLC finally convinced the board to adopt a resolution after the Department of Justice released an audit revealing widespread FBI abuse in the issuing of NSLs. &quot;Brighton’s courageous vote sends a strong message to Washington and our whole nation that the tragic attacks of September 11th were not a signal for the United States to abandon the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. It also lets the residents of Brighton know that their elected officials have taken the necessary steps to ensure public safety, while protecting the civil liberties of its citizens&quot; said Braiman. The full text of Brighton’s Resolution is available online at: http://bordc.org/detail.php?id=743 ] Contacts: tanutuva@rochester.rr.com (Lee Price) nancy_braiman@yahoo.com (NancyBraiman)

<p>Brighton Town Council Passes Resolution Upholding Rights and Liberties In Response to Flawed Patriot Act Provisions and FBI Abuse of Power</p> <!--break--><p> Rochester, NY— In response to concern about flaws in the Patriot Act and recent revelations of FBI abuse of Patriot Act powers, the Brighton Town Council, in a vote of 5-0, today approved a resolution upholding the Bill of Rights and Constitution and protecting the rights of Brighton residents from anti-terrorism measures that the Council believes go too far. Brighton is the first community in the country to pass an anti-Patriot Act resolution challenging National Security Letters (NSLs), which were recently revealed to be overused and abused by the FBI. Brighton also joins 409 municipalities to have passed resolutions against the Patriot Act, according to the Bill of Rights Defense Committee in Northampton, MA , which tracks the resolutions and encourages a national debate on threats to civil liberties from the Patriot Act and other post-September 11th anti-terrorism measures.</p> <p>The Rochester Civil Liberties Coalition (RCLC) was founded by Lee Price of Fairport, NY to encourage local governments in Monroe County to pass anti-Patriot resolutions during the reauthorization process of the USA Patriot Act. “Rochester City Council’s resolution last year was our first success”, he said. ACLU legal counsel, Scott Forsyth, worked with the town of Brighton, a suburb of Rochester, to craft a resolution to address Patriot Act threats to civil liberties, specifically the still-flawed Provision Section 215 and NSL provisions. Nancy Braiman, a coordinator for the RCLC, called the Brighton vote a vote for the Bill of Rights. Ms. Braiman coordinated media coverage, lobbying, and other community events to build public support to adopt the measure. After a year of lobbying, Ms. Braiman and the RCLC finally convinced the board to adopt a resolution after the Department of Justice released an audit revealing widespread FBI abuse in the issuing of NSLs. "Brighton’s courageous vote sends a strong message to Washington and our whole nation that the tragic attacks of September 11th were not a signal for the United States to abandon the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. It also lets the residents of Brighton know that their elected officials have taken the necessary steps to ensure public safety, while protecting the civil liberties of its citizens" said Braiman.</p> <p>The full text of Brighton’s Resolution is available online at: <a href="http://bordc.org/detail.php?id=743">http://bordc.org/detail.php?id=743</a> ]</p> <p>Contacts:<br /> <a href="mailto:tanutuva@rochester.rr.com">tanutuva@rochester.rr.com</a> (Lee Price)<br /> <a href="mailto:nancy_braiman@yahoo.com">nancy_braiman@yahoo.com</a> (NancyBraiman)</p>