I. General
Do the U.S. Department of Justice’s investigative tactics respect civil rights?
"Our efforts have been crafted carefully to avoid infringing on constitutional
rights while saving American lives."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"[W]e are very careful to observe the Constitution and to protect it while
we are protecting American lives."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Fox News Sunday, December 2, 2001
"[I]t is equally important to emphasize that the detentions, the targeted
interviews, and the other aggressive investigative techniques we are currently
employing are all legal under the Constitution and applicable federal law as
it existed both before and after September 10th."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
II. Targeted Interviews
Who will be asked for an interview?
"The names were compiled using common-sense criteria that take into account
the manner, according to our intelligence sources, in which Al Qaida has traditionally
operated. Thus, for example, the list includes individuals who entered the United
States with a passport from a foreign country in which Al Qaeda has operated
or recruited; who entered the United States after January 1, 2000; and who are
males between the ages of 18 and 33."
Viet D. Dinh, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, December 4, 2001
"It’s entirely possible there are those on the list who don’t belong.
If people let us know they don’t belong, we’ll double-check. If they don’t fit
the criteria, we won’t be talking to them.
Assistant United States Attorney Lynn Helland, "Arabs in Michigan Consenting
to Interviews," Allan Lengel and Dan Eggen, The Washington Post, December
1, 2001.
Are the interviews voluntary?
"We’re interviewing people, on a voluntary basis. We’re saying welcome
to America. You have come to our country; why don’t you help make us safe? Why
don’t you share information with us?"
President George W. Bush, Speech to U.S. Attorneys Conference, Thursday, November
29, 2001
"We have asked a very limited number of individuals, visitors to our country
holding passports from countries with active al Qaeda operations, to speak voluntarily
with law enforcement. We are forcing them to do nothing. We are merely asking
them to do the right thing, to willingly disclose information they may have
of terrorist threats to the lives and safety of all people in the United States."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"The interviews will be conducted on a consensual basis, and every interview
subject (‘individual’) will be free to decline to answer questions."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Cokie Roberts asked, "In the question of interviewing the 5,000 or so
men, I’m curious about how this works. If – you say it’s voluntary, but
what happens if they don’t show up?" Attorney General Ashcroft answered,
"If they don’t respond to the questions, they don’t."
This Week, December 2, 2001
"Law enforcement is seeking to interview just over 5,000 persons voluntarily."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
What will happen to an interview subject if he refuses to be interviewed?
"If they say no, that will be the end of it."
John Bell, Special Agent in Charge, Detroit FBI Office, "The Investigation:
Questioning Time Extended," Jim Schaefer, Detroit Free Press, December
4, 2001
"Authorities also have emphasized the voluntary nature of the interviews,
saying that if the men don’t want to be interviewed, they can decline the requests
and face no penalties."
"Arab leaders say men who don’t fit profile still asked for interviews,"
Alexandra R. Moses, Associated Press, November 30, 2001
Are interview subjects in custody during their interviews?
"These interviews will not be ‘custodial interrogations.’"
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Arab-American community representatives in Dearborn, Michigan who met with
the Attorney General say that he told them that an interview subject would not
be in custody during his interview.
"Ashcroft reassures local Arabs," Hawke Fracassa, The Detroit News,
December 3, 2001
Can an interview subject choose the time, date, and location of his interview?
"Unless the individual prefers to conduct the interview away from his
home, workplace or neighborhood, you should ordinarily not ask him to accompany
you to the police station or the field office."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
"Please contact my office to set up an interview at a location, date,
and time that is convenient for you."
November 2001 letter from Jeffrey G. Collins, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern
District of Michigan, to interview subjects.
Will an interview subject be asked about his immigration status?
"[I]f you suspect that a particular individual may be in violation of
the federal immigration laws, you should call the INS representative on your
Anti-Terrorism Task Force or the INS officials at the closest Law Enforcement
Support Center. Those officials will advise you whether the individual in violation
of the immigration laws and whether he should be detained … You should specifically
ask to see the individual’s passport and visa, and you should take note whether
he appears to be residing in the United States within the time period allowed
by the visa."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Will an interview subject be charged if he is suspected violating immigration
laws?
"We will apply the immigration laws. We’re interviewing people, on a voluntary
basis."
President George W. Bush, Speech to U.S. Attorneys Conference, Thursday, November
29, 2001
"We will – we prosecute violations of the law, and for those individuals
who have violated the law, the United States of America is unapologetic."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, "An ‘Unapologetic’ Ashcroft,"
Newsweek, December 10, 2001
"While the primary purpose of these interviews is not to ascertain the
legality of the individuals’ immigration status, the federal responsibility
to enforce the immigration law, as exercised by the Immigration and Naturalization
Service (‘INS’), is an important one. Therefore, if you suspect that a
particular individual may be in violation of the federal immigration laws, you
should call the INS representative on your Anti-Terrorism Task Force or the
INS officials at the closest Law Enforcement Support Center. Those officials
will advise you whether the individual in violation of the immigration laws
and whether he should be detained."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
"We’re not going to turn a blind eye to a crime being committed."
Mindy Tucker, Director, Office of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Justice,
commenting on INS directive "The Terror Questions: Detainment memo fuels
skepticism," Tamara Audi and Jim Schaefer, Detroit Free Press, November
28, 2001
"The questioning is centered around issues relating to terrorism. It’s
not centered around immigration status. If in the course of an interview immigration
issues arise, the office cannot just look the other way. They can relay that
information."
Jeffrey G. Collins, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan,
"More than 300 left on fed interview list," Tamara Audi, Detroit Free
Press, December 13, 2001
Will an interview subject be detained if he is suspected of violating immigration
laws?
"While the primary purpose of these interviews is not to ascertain the
legality of the individuals’ immigration status, the federal responsibility
to enforce the immigration law, as exercised by the Immigration and Naturalization
Service (‘INS’), is an important one. Therefore, if you suspect that a
particular individual may be in violation of the federal immigration laws, you
should call the INS representative on your Anti-Terrorism Task Force or the
INS officials at the closest Law Enforcement Support Center. Those officials
will advise you whether the individual in violation of the immigration laws
and whether he should be detained."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
"Affirmative requests either by the FBI or the United States Attorney’s
Office to detain immigration violators under ‘No Bond’ should be honored
and will be handled in the same manner as all prior cases with a direct nexus
to the Sept. 11th investigation … Where neither the FBI or the local United
States expresses any interest or any nexus with terrorist investigations, decisions
to detain and set bond will be handled routinely under existing procedures in
accordance with the applicable provisions."
Memo from Immigration and Naturalization Services to U.S. Attorneys Offices,
"The Terror Questions: Detainment memo fuels skepticism," Tamara Audi
and Jim Schaefer, Detroit Free Press, November 28, 2001
Will an interview subject be asked about his political views?
"You should ask whether the individual is aware of any persons who have
sympathy for the September 11th hijackers or other terrorists, or for the causes
those terrorists espouse. You should also ask the individual whether he shares
those sympathies to any degree."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Will an interview subject be asked about his religious beliefs?
"You should also be careful not to inquire into an individual’s religious
beliefs and practices … It is not appropriate to question or otherwise challenge
the validity of religious beliefs or practices."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Does an interview subject have the right to have counsel present during his
interview?
"It is equally important to emphasize that the detentions, the targeted
interviews, and the other aggressive investigative techniques we are currently
employing are all legal under the Constitution and applicable federal law as
it existed both before and after September 10th. Nobody is being held incommunicado;
nobody is being denied the right to an attorney; nobody is being denied due
process."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Arab-American community representatives in Dearborn, Michigan who met with
the Attorney General say that he told them that an interview subject would be
permitted to have an attorney present during his interview.
"Ashcroft reassures local Arabs," Hawke Fracassa, The Detroit News,
December 3, 2001
"As these interviews will not be ‘custodial interrogations,’ there
is no need to seek a waiver of Miranda rights."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Does an interview subject have the right to have a translator present during
his interview?
"A number of these individuals may have difficulty with the English language
and little understanding of our criminal justice system, and we want them and
the other members of their communities to understand that they are not being
taken into custody and that the interviews are being pursued on a consensual
basis."
Memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson to United States
Attorneys and Members of the Anti-Terrorism Task Forces, November 9, 2001
Does an interview subject have the right to have a community representative
present during his interview?
According to media reports, Dearborn, Michigan community representatives who
participated in a meeting with Attorney General Ashcroft said that the Attorney
General promised that they could attend an interview if the interview subject
wanted them to attend.
"Ashcroft reassures local Arabs," Hawke Fracassa, The Detroit News,
December 3, 2001; "Arabs gain Ashcroft’s ear," Niraj Warikoo, Detroit
Free Press, December 3, 2001
Are interview subjects suspects in the terrorism investigation?
"Importantly, these persons are not suspects, but simply people with whom
we want to talk because they may have helpful information."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
"Anytime we think individuals may have information relating to the commission
of a crime or some threat to the safety and security and the lives of Americans,
we’re going to interview [them] … In New York when [a] plane goes down, we
interview everybody in the neighborhood – not that we think they’ve done anything
wrong, but we want to know if they have information that can help us to solve
a problem. The same is true in this case."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, "An ‘Unapologetic’ Ashcroft,"
Newsweek, December 10, 2001
"We have no reason to believe that you are, in any way, associated with
terrorist activities."
November 2001 letter from Jeffrey G. Collins, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern
District of Michigan, to interview subjects.
Were interview subjects selected on the basis of their religion or ethnicity?
"The United States government is not participating in any sort of racial
profiling. We are interviewing recent arrivals from a variety of passport backgrounds."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, "More than 150 Men Agree to Terror Probe
Interviews," David Shepardson, Detroit News, December 4, 2001
"Now, we’re being as kind and fair and gentle as we can in terms of inviting
people to participate in helping us. And we have not identified people based
on their ethnic origin. We have identified individuals who are not citizens,
but based on the country which issued their passports. Virtually all the nations
that issue passports, just as the United States of America does, issue passports
to people of a variety of ethnic origins and backgrounds, because they’re diverse
nations."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, press conference, November 27, 2001
How can an interviewee file a complaint regarding his interview?
Complaints should be filed with the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and/or
the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Office of Professional Responsibility
(FBI/OPR). The OIG accepts complaints by mail, e-mail, phone, and fax. The FBI/OPR
accepts complaints only by mail.
Office of the Inspector General
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 4706
Washington, DC 20530-0001
800-869-4499
202-616-9881 (f)
oig.hotline@usdoj.gov
http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/hotline.htm
Office of Professional Responsibility
Federal Bureau of Investigation
U.S. Department of Justice
935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20535-0001
III. Detentions
Can an individual be detained without being charged?
"We don’t have people detained who are not charged. Every person that
we’ve detained is a violator, someone who has violated the laws."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Fox News Sunday, December 2, 2001
"Every detention is fully consistent with established constitutional and
statutory authority. Every person detained has been charged with a violation
of either immigration law or criminal law, or is being lawfully detained on
a material witness warrant."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
How many people are being detained?
"[W]e have in detention about 563 individuals who are being detained on
Immigration and Naturalization Service items related to the events of 9-11.
We have a total of about 20,000 people detained in the Immigration and Naturalization
detention program. We have about 54 people detained on criminal charges, and
those individuals obviously, unless the court has sealed the nature of the charge,
there is a public record of their detention, although it is not a coordinated
list. We have detained some other individuals, and I am not at liberty to discuss
their detentions, because they are the subjects of material witness warrants."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
Do those who are detained have the right to counsel?
"All persons being detained have the right to contact their lawyers and
their families … [T]here are reasonable limits that I think have to be imposed,
even on those individuals who have violated the law and want to confer with
their attorneys. I believe it is the right, and will take steps to make sure
again that every detainee understands that we believe it to be his or her right
that they have counsel for those for whom government counsel is not provided;
in other words, that there is not a government-funded counsel, we have a practice
of providing pro bono counsels. And we have been bringing people of those pro
bono counsels into the detention facilities regularly, so that individuals who
are being detained can have an opportunity to see an attorney if they haven’t
called them or haven’t chosen to. They still have a chance to confer. I want
to do that, and I do not intend to hold individuals without access to counsel.
And we will take steps to make sure that we don’t. I don’t believe that we are.
And I will make available to individuals an understanding of pro bono counsel
or free counsel in the event that they are not classified as individuals entitled
to an attorney at government expense."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"Every one of these individuals has a right to access to counsel."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Which detainees have the right to government-funded counsel?
"In the criminal cases, and the case of material witnesses, the person
is provided a lawyer at government expense if the person cannot afford one.
While persons detained on immigration charges do not have a right to lawyers
at public expense, INS policy is to provide each person with information about
available pro bono representation."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Is the Department of Justice detaining people in secret?
"Now, no person who is being held in the United States is being held in
secret. They can all contact their lawyers. They can contact their families,
they can announce their detentions."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Fox News Sunday, December 2, 2001
"Every one of the persons detained, whether on criminal or immigration
charges or as a material witness, has the right to make phone calls to family
and attorneys. None is being held incommunicado."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Do those who are detained have the right to contact their families?
"All persons being detained have the right to contact their lawyers and
their families." Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S.
Senate Judiciary Committee, December 6, 2001.
"Every one of the persons detained, whether on criminal or immigration
charges or as a material witness, has the right to make phone calls to family
and attorneys."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Are the identities of those who are in detention public?
"Our respect for their privacy and concern for saving lives motivates
us not to publicize the names of those detained." Attorney General John
Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, December 6, 2001.
"The identity of every person who has been arrested on a criminal charge
is public. We have not released the names of persons being held on material
witness warrants because they are issued under seal as related to grand jury
proceedings in different districts. Finally, although the identity of INS detainees
is not a secret, we have not compiled a public list of the persons detained
on immigration charges, both to protect the privacy of those detained and for
legitimate law-enforcement purposes. I emphasize, however, that there is nothing
preventing any of these individuals from identifying themselves."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Does the law require or prohibit the disclosure of the identifies of those
in detention?
"The law varies in relation to the nature of the detainee. If a detainee
is a permanent resident but an alien to the United States, the law prohibits
the disclosure of his name or her name. If the person is not a permanent resident
but is here on another kind of visa or authority, the law recognizes the duty
of the attorney general or the authorities to protect prosecutions and investigations
by not providing lists of the names. These laws are basically summed up in the
FOIA legislation, which talks about freedom of information. And one of the considerations
I have is that the privacy rights of individuals in this setting should be respected,
that people should not be labeled as "terrorists" while we are still
investigating any connections they might have to terrorism. With that in mind,
I have – as in addition to protecting from disclosing information about
who we have in custody or don’t have in custody as a coordinated list, I have
refrained from developing the list, and frankly don’t intend to develop such
a list. You mentioned that each of these individuals has had the right to self-disclose
their incarceration." Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, December 6, 2001.
How does an interviewee or detainee file a complaint regarding his/her detention?
Complaints should be filed with the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and/or
the INS Office of Internal Audit (INS/OIA). The OIG has the right of first refusal
regarding all such complaints. The OIG accepts complaints by mail, e-mail, phone,
and fax. The INS/OIA accepts complaints only by mail.
Office of the Inspector General
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 4706
Washington, DC 20530-0001
800-869-4499
202-616-9881 (f)
oig.hotline@usdoj.gov
http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/hotline.htm
Office of Internal Audit
Immigration and Naturalization Service
U.S. Department of Justice
425 I St., NW
Room 3260
Washington, DC 20536
http://www.ins.gov/graphics/aboutins/Quality/qualfile.htm
IV. Monitoring of Attorney-Client Communications
Why is the Department of Justice monitoring communications between certain
detainees and their attorneys?
"Now, let me go briefly to the reason for this … And we are simply,
for terrorists who would seek to follow the al Qaeda manual and assist those
brothers in their operation on the outside in continuing to perpetrate acts
through hidden messages and other signals they send through their attorneys
— we simply aren’t going to allow that to happen." Attorney General John
Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, December 6, 2001.
"It’s our commitment to say that we will not allow people to run criminal
operations to impair the lives and safety of Americans from their prison cells
by sending messages either knowingly or unknowingly through their lawyers."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Fox News Sunday, December 2, 2001
How many detainees’ attorney-client communications are being monitored by the
Department of Justice?
"We have the authority to monitor the conversations of 16 of 158,000 federal
inmates and their attorneys because we suspect these communications could facilitate
acts of terrorism."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
What is the legal authority for monitoring communications between detainees
and their attorneys?
"The Justice Department has amended a 1996 regulation that permits the
monitoring of certain communications of inmates who are subject to special administrative
measures … Under this pre-existing regulation, a very small group of the most
dangerous inmates are subject to special administrative measures if the attorney
general determines that unrestricted communication with these inmates could
result in death or serious bodily harm to others. When that determination has
been made, restrictions are put on those inmates’ ability to communicate with
and contact others. The amendment promulgated on October 31 extends the regulation
to permit the monitoring of attorney-client communications for this very small
and discrete group of inmates only if the Attorney General makes an additional
finding that reasonable suspicion exists that a particular detainee may use
communications with attorneys to further or facilitate acts of terrorism."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the Judiciary Committee, U.S. Senate, November 28, 2001
Who are the detainees whose attorney-client communications are subject to monitoring?
"These are only people who have been certified as people who are trying
to run criminal or terrorist activities from prison. So they’re people who are
subject to special administrative measures."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, This Week, December 2, 2001
"This very small and discrete group of inmates only if the Attorney General
makes an additional finding that reasonable suspicion exists that a particular
detainee may use communications with attorneys to further or facilitate acts
of terrorism."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the Judiciary Committee, U.S. Senate, November 28, 2001
What protections are in place to safeguard the rights of a detainee whose communications
are subject to monitoring?
"The department’s first rule would be that you first give notice to the
individual and to his lawyer. Secondly, this is done by individuals who are
forbidden to have association with or communication with any prosecutors. Thirdly,
no information can be used at all that flows from the understanding or the auditing
of these conversations without first being approved by a federal judge, unless,
fourthly, it is information which could help avert a terrorist attack."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"The regulation provides for important safeguards to protect the attorney-client
privilege. First, the attorney and his client will be notified if their communication
will be monitored. Second, the team monitoring the communications will have
no connection with any ongoing prosecution that involves the client. Third,
no privileged information will be retained by the persons monitoring the conversations;
the only information retained will be unprivileged threat information. Fourth,
absent an imminent emergency, the government will have to seek court approval
before any information is used for any purpose from those conversations. And
fifth, no information that is protected by the attorney-client privilege may
be used for prosecution."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Is a detainee notified that his/her attorney-client communications are being
monitored?
"The word ‘eavesdropping’ does not define what the United States
Justice Department proposes doing in certain cases now. Eavesdropping would
be an unnoticed, no information given to the inmate or to the lawyer. The department’s
first rule would be that you first give notice to the individual and to his
lawyer … Each such prisoner has been told in advance his conversations will
be monitored."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"Now, these individuals are told, We’re going to monitor what you’re saying
to your lawyer, and we say to the lawyer, We’re going to monitor it."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, This Week, December 2, 2001
"[T]he attorney and his client will be notified if their communication
will be monitored."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Is the Department of Justice’s monitoring of communications between detainees
and their attorneys legal?
"Now, I believe that the safeguards we have crafted fully satisfy well
beyond the kinds of conditions which were sanctioned, or at least accepted by
the court in the Weatherford case [Weatherford v. Bursey, 429 U.S. 545 (1977)]."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"[T]his is a safe-guarded, carefully crafted program that doesn’t infringe
the rights of people."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Fox News Sunday, December 2, 2001
"This regulation accords with established constitutional and legal authority.
Courts have long recognized that a client’s communications are not privileged
if they are in furtherance of criminal activity. And the Supreme Court has expressly
recognized that the government may, consistent with the right to counsel, monitor
attorney-client communications if there is a legitimate law-enforcement reason
for doing so and if privileged communications are not used against the defendant.
Both those conditions are met here."
Michael Chertoff, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Testimony
to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, November 28, 2001
Can the communications between a detainee and his/her attorney be used against
the detainee by the Department of Justice?
"None of the information that is protected by attorney-client privilege
may be used for prosecution. Information will only be used to stop impending
terrorist acts and to save American lives … Secondly, this is done by individuals
who are forbidden to have association with or communication with any prosecutors.
Thirdly, no information can be used at all that flows from the understanding
or the auditing of these conversations without first being approved by a federal
judge, unless, fourthly, it is information which could help avert a terrorist
attack."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee,
December 6, 2001.
"The law provides, the regulations provide that those people listening
can have nothing to do with the prosecution of the case, and the information
can’t be used in any way without the approval of a federal judge."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, This Week, December 2, 2001
Can the attorney-client communications of a pre-conviction detainee be monitored?
"It could apply, I believe, to people who are pre-conviction. It hasn’t,
that I know of."
Attorney General John Ashcroft, Fox News Sunday, December 2, 2001