Name of Fields

Data

Topic:

Security

Message:

Your suddenly introduced policy of searching bags being carried into the public transport system is an organised violation of the Fourth Amendment, and as such must be discontinued immediately. The notion that passengers who refuse to have their property searched are free to choose not to enter the transport system is not a valid justification for this policy. For most people in New York, public transport is the only option for travelling from place to place in the city. Saying that someone is free not to enter the subway is like saying that someone under house arrest is free to remain at home. If I am one of those randomly chosen to be searched, I will assert my Fourth Amendment right to freedom from unreasonable search and seizure. If I'm prevented from entering the subway at the station that I've chosen, I'll walk to the next station, and the next and the next, until I'm not one of those chosen to be searched. Thus the only effect of this policy will be to waste my time, and the police's time.