The Briefing Room
General Category => National/Breaking News => Topic started by: rangerrebew on November 10, 2013, 11:39:41 am
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Feds subject drug suspect to vaginal/anal probe, X-ray, CT Scan, without a warrant -- find nothing
Cory Doctorow at 11:36 am Sat, Nov 9, 2013
The ACLU is representing a New Mexico woman in her fifties who was subjected by federal agents to a two-handed (!) vaginal and anal examination, an involuntary X-ray and CAT scan, and was forced to defecate in front of strangers. The woman was suspected of being in possession of drugs, on the basis of a drug-dog alert at the Juarez/El Paso border-crossing. No drugs were found. The federal agents -- it's not clear what agency they were with -- did not obtain a warrant. The doctors at University Medical Center in El Paso performed the procedures without the victim's consent, including the CT scan, which subjects people to a high dose of potentially harmful radiation.
The ACLU of New Mexico is certainly developing some deep expertise on the subject of involuntary, drug-war anal probes: see this earlier story by Mark.
A dog alerted to the woman, and Schaur Ives said federal agents stripped searched her at the facility, asked her to undress, to spread her genitalia and to cough. Female agents also allegedly pressed their fingers into her vagina looking for drugs.
The woman claims they didn't discover anything during the on-site strip search, so they took her to University Medical Center of El Paso.
"First, medical staff observed her making a bowl movement and no drugs were found at that point," Schaur Ives said. "They then took an X-ray, but it did not reveal any contraband. They then did a cavity search and they probed her vagina and her anus, they described in the medical records as bi-manual--two handed. Finally, they did a cat scan. Again, they found nothing."
The ACLU claims the federal agents never secured a search warrant before probing or touching the woman.
"And her medical records indicate that she refused consent," Shaur Ives said.
http://boingboing.net/2013/11/09/feds-subject-drug-suspect-to-v.html
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This is not being done without reason.
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Is there any provision in the ACA that implies consent to this sort of thing? Just curious.
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So far, the stories like this I've read lately involve a drug-sniffing dog. These are different dogs, but there seems to be a spate of these incidents lately. I'll say it again until everyone is finally convinced - this War on Drugs has only served to strip us of our freedom - I think more than any other thing. We are now a Police State.
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Those of us who never have ingested an illegal drug in our entire lives shouldn't consider ourselves immune from this sort of intrusion, either. When they pound down the front door or yank you out of line at the TSA checkpoint, whatcha gonna do?
Probable cause? We don' need no steenkin' probable cause!
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The cure (warrantless search) is worse than the disease (personal drug use).
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Could dogs be confusing underwear skid marks for dope? 000hehehehe
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This is not being done without reason.
Of course there is a reason. The rulers have discovered a new way to exercise their authority and control over the subjects. Can't wait to see what the next step is following digits and hands being forced into every orifice of the body. I think slicing and dicing would be a nice follow up. Just toss the body into a dumpster when finished. Maybe a little research into mengele’s work will provide some additional ideas.