The assault on this amendment began with the "no knock" drug laws. Who can be secure in his home when cowboy cops can smash down your door at any time, and shoot you in the back multiple times on the claim you were going for a nonexistent weapon. This was actually done in my home town because of a false tip given by a drug dealer/informant. The cops got away with it, despite the fact that the one injured cop proved to have been shot by another cop, no drugs or weapons were found and they hadn't bothered to get a warrant! A federal judge was also shot in such a raid.

SC rulings have said that you can legally be searched in your vehicle if you have been stopped for any traffic violation – because you are technically under arrest. If the cops think there is a legitimate warrant out for you – as long as they acted in "good faith" – you can be searched. They ruled that a motor home even though it was inoperable and on blocks was a "vehicle."

So you don't use drugs; doesn't affect you, right? Neither did that Federal Judge or the man shot dead in my home town – or many others. Remember Waco? That was a "no knock" raid.

The Bill of Rights is to protect ALL OF US – particularly the innocent – from government intrusion. Now Bush is wiretapping us all – that pesky Fourth Amendment again – and the Supremes say none of us have standing to sue because we can't prove the government is listening – because the government won't tell us!

The assault on this amendment began with the "no knock" drug laws. Who can be secure in his home when cowboy cops can smash down your door at any time, and shoot you in the back multiple times on the claim you were going for a nonexistent weapon. This was actually done in my home town because of a false tip given by a drug dealer/informant. The cops got away with it, despite the fact that the one injured cop proved to have been shot by another cop, no drugs or weapons were found and <i>they hadn’t bothered to get a warrant!</i> A federal judge was also shot in such a raid.

SC rulings have said that you can legally be searched in your vehicle if you have been stopped for any traffic violation – because you are technically under arrest. If the cops <i>think</i> there is a legitimate warrant out for you – as long as they acted in "good faith" – you can be searched. They ruled that a motor home <i>even though it was inoperable and on blocks</i> was a "vehicle."

So you don’t use drugs; doesn’t affect you, right? Neither did that Federal Judge or the man shot dead in my home town – or many others. Remember Waco? That was a "no knock" raid.

The Bill of Rights is to protect ALL OF US – particularly the innocent – from government intrusion. Now Bush is wiretapping us all – that pesky Fourth Amendment again – and the Supremes say none of us have standing to sue <i>because we can’t prove the government is listening – because the government won’t tell us!</i>