U.S. Saved From Another Terrorist
The Patriot Act, designed to help fight terrorism, may be being misused.
The Patriot Act was enacted following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. But it has given airlines some latitude in dealing with what they may consider unruly behavior. A case in point is Tamara Jo Freeman, who in 2007 was flying on Frontier Airlines to Denver when she moderately spanked her unruly children, then responded with some profanities when confronted by a flight attendant.
The Los Angeles Times reported this week that Freeman was arrested and spent three months in jail before entering a guilty plea. Mat Staver with Liberty Counsel reacts to the story.
"It makes no sense at all to convict some mother, who is trying to discipline her children, of violating a terrorism law -- a law that's defined as trying to stop terrorists, defined as trying to stop somebody from overthrowing or hijacking the plane," says the attorney.
Staver says that strangely enough, Freeman's case is not an isolated one. According to the LA Times, at least 200 airline passengers have been convicted under the amended Patriot Act -- many accused of simply raising their voice, using foul language, or being drunk.
"This law is defying common sense," Staver states. "I don't think that was the intent of the law, and its application in this case and several other cases [has] nothing to do with protecting the people on the airplane."
The Liberty Counsel founder says enforcement in these cases is so absurd that the law obviously needs to be changed.
According to the Times, Freeman's conviction cost her custody of her children, who were placed in foster care during her incarceration. She is now trying to turn back legal proceedings in which the foster parents are seeking to adopt the children.
posted by Calan at 13:45
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