Local Police Want Right to Jam Wireless Signals

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Bob Poortinga <ip () k9sql us>
Date: February 1, 2009 8:39:30 PM EST
To: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: Local Police Want Right to Jam Wireless Signals

For IP if appropriate:

Local Police Want Right to Jam Wireless Signals
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/31/AR2009013101548_pf.html 
>

"As President Obama's motorcade rolled down Pennsylvania Avenue on
Inauguration Day, federal authorities deployed a closely held law
enforcement tool: equipment that can jam cellphones and other wireless
devices to foil remote-controlled bombs, sources said.

It is an increasingly common technology, with federal agencies
expanding its use as state and local agencies are pushing for
permission to do the same. Police and others say it could stop
terrorists from coordinating during an attack, prevent suspects from
erasing evidence on wireless devices, simplify arrests and keep
inmates from using contraband phones.

But jamming remains strictly illegal for state and local agencies.
Federal officials barely acknowledge that they use it inside the
United States, and the few federal agencies that can jam signals
usually must seek a legal waiver first.

The quest to expand the technology has invigorated a debate about how
widely jamming should be allowed and whether its value as a common
crime-fighting strategy outweighs its downsides, including restricting
the constant access to the airwaves that Americans have come to
expect."
...

--
Bob Poortinga  K9SQL
Bloomington, IN  US




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