The Patriot Act and the Constitution

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trace devices, and access to stored e-mail or communications records. The act also allows authorities to intercept communications to and from a trespasser within a computer system, with the permission of the system owner (Doyle, 2002). Many procedures that required a court order for approval before the act now only require government certification.
Many people believe this is a direct violation of our Fourth Amendment right, which is protection from unreasonable search and seizures. In the information age, the interception and collection of our electronic communications without our knowledge can easily be called a unreasonable search or seizure. There is intense debate about the government’s power to investigate criminal charges with no probable cause as long as it’s stated that it is for intelligence gathering purposes. Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have lobbied in every shape and form to make the public aware and to gather supporters against the Patriot Act. The ACLU is rallying supporters to submit legislation to reject the Patriot Act in their respective cities, contacting your state and local representatives in rejection and opposition to the Patriot Act, and campaigning in local churches and schools against the act. The ACLU and other organizations have been successful in their mission, as 153 communities, including several major cities and 3 states have passed resolutions denouncing the act, citing it as an assault on civil liberties (Lithwick and Turner, 2003).
The forces for the act have an equally stro...