March 2001 - cypherpunks-legacy

A hint about strategy and tactics, one about cops, and , general system analysis
by Jim Choate 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

Never assume your opponent is a fool, even if they are. Always try to make your opponent think you are. They are not stupid. They are motivated and believe in what they are doing. These are the kinds of people that believe you made a mistake and they're willing to spend whatever it takes to find it. [1] If you want to understand a system, follow the money. ____________________________________________________________________ If the law is based on precedence, why is the Constitution not the final precedence since it's the primary authority? The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage(a)ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- -------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] A recent rapist was caught here in Austin after years of work simply because he spit on the sidewalk in public and was under surveillance. They grabbed a sample of the spit and matched it to evidence at a previous rape.

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Another point about 'anonymous cash payments'
by Jim Choate 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

The UPS uses very effective computer character recognition. How long do you think it'll take 'em (if they aren't now) to drop a traffic analysis system in there to look for 'known writing samples'? Not very long I suspect. And mail is tracked with respect to pickup by the very way it's sorted in the bag. You could cause a slight hickup here by using convenient drop boxes but that is getting a tad rare (not to mention most are located at businesses that have security cameras - you think a couple of cops would go through some tape if they knew the specific date the letter was dropped? I think so.) Using a typewriter or laser printer won't help, each leave characteristic marks. You people should spend more time looking in forensics texts. But hey, don't believe me. Keep cranking out those 'anonymous' cash payments sent through the mail...;) ____________________________________________________________________ If the law is based on precedence, why is the Constitution not the final precedence since it's the primary authority? The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage(a)ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------

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Re: semi-anon test from a throwaway account part deux
by Anonymous 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

On Wed, 28 Mar 2001, Jim Choate blathered: > > Anonymizer.com does cookie blocking with the premium accounts, I > > believe. > > And now they have your credit card #... No, ninny, they do not. Anonymizer accepts cash payments. https://www.anonymizer.com/signup/sign_up.shtml Why don't you check your facts before you open your hole? -MW-

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semi-anon test from a throwaway account part deux
by Morlock Elloi 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

OK, the first one didn't work. Any idea how long does it take for LEA to request yahoo logs, get the IP, go to ISP and figure out who I am ? Or is it fully automated by now, so if I mention AP my name (as ISP knows it) flashes on some screen ? Or someone is sent to the internet cafe I am posting from ? Questions, questions. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get email at your own domain with Yahoo! Mail. http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/

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IPO SECrets Newsletter 3.28.01
by EDGAR Online News 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

EDGAR Online's IPO SECrets Newsletter Editor: Timothy Middleton, EDGAR Online Analyst editor(a)edgar-online.com ***INSIDE THIS ISSUE IPO QUESTION OF THE WEEK: What Is a Reload Provision? IPO COLUMN OF THE WEEK: IPO Market Returning to Normal? IPO COMPANY PROFILE: Agere Systems (AGR): a Bargain at $6? IPO MIDWEEK UPDATE: Go Ahead. No, After You. Please, You Go First. VC COMPANY PROFILE: NuGenesis: Pharmaceutical, Scientific Data Management COMPANIES MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE ----------ADVERTISEMENT--------------------- Free Annual Reports For Over 3,400 Companies For EDGAR Online customers only. Download or get printed copies of Annual Reports FREE. Go to http://edgar-online.ar.wilink.com to order today. -------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------- ***IPO QUESTION OF THE WEEK*** ---------------------------------------- QUESTION: What is a reload provision? ANSWER: A reload provision is a feature in an option plan (or option agreement) that allows companies to issue new option grants to option-holding employees in exchange for retiring their former grants. The new exercise price is usually pegged to the current market price. The number of reload shares granted is equal to the number of shares delivered to exercise the option plus, in some cases, any shares withheld for tax withholding obligations, says Bruce Brumberg, editor-in-chief of MyStockOptions.com. The option generally expires on the same date that the original option would have. ---------------------------------------- ***IPO COLUMN OF THE WEEK*** ---------------------------------------- IPO Market Returning to Normal? IPOs have stopped going down. After months of battering, new equity offerings have shown faint signs of life in March. Six of the seven IPOs that began trading this month finished their first day in the black. Rather than soaring tenfold, as hot issues were doing a year earlier, they finished ahead modestly mostly in line with the traditional norm of leaving 10% or so on the table for aftermarket investors. Only the cream of the crop are getting through the IPO window, and they are performing more as they did historically, delivering reasonable returns, says Clint Morrison, head of equity research for Miller Johnson Steichen Kinnard, an investment bank in Minneapolis. The most successful launch was AFC Enterprises (AFCE), the No. 2 operator of fast-food chicken restaurants, such as Churchs and Popeyes. Priced at $17, it finished its first trading day, March 2, at $20.38 a gain of 19.9%. At press time the shares were trading around $18.75, up 10.3% from the IPO price. http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=5222 The most highly touted deal of March, Loudcloud Inc. (LDCL), finished its first day of trading, March 9, at $6.16 some 16 cents, or 0.4%, ahead of the IPO price. It subsequently slipped to $5.50, 8.3% below the initial price. Loudclouds chairman is Marc Andreessen, formerly of Netscape. http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=5036 Stelmar Shipping (SJH) found favor in the aftermarket, and has preserved it since its March 8 debut. Priced at $12, the shares finished their first day at $12.80 and were trading at press time at $13.20, a gain of precisely 10.0%. http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=5280 The months sole loser was SureBeam Corp. (SURE), a maker of electronic pasteurization equipment for the food industry. Launched March 16 at $10, the shares closed their first day down 14.1% at $8.59. They have since recovered, but only to $9.25. http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=4912 In its registration statement with the SEC, SureBeam reported a pro forma loss of $330,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2000, on revenue of $9.3 million. Losses, says Morrison, are not something IPO investors will tolerate these days. What were hearing from our customers is, theyre not interested; everything else is on sale, so theyll buy the stuff they already own, he says. To get them interested, its got to be very compelling, which means theres got to be immediate visibility in earnings and growth. It doesnt necessarily have to be a low-risk deal, but theres got to be a level of comfort with the story. --------ADVERTISEMENT----------------------- Purchase Business/Credit Reports from Dun & Bradstreet on over 11 million U.S. businesses. Click on the "Resources" link when you look up SEC filings for any public company, or search by company name and state at http://www.edgar.telebase.com -------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------- ***COMPANY PROFILE*** ---------------------------------------- Agere Systems (AGR) $6 Price Called Bargain The scaled-down IPO of Lucent Technologies (LU) spin-off Agere Systems was priced Tuesday at a rock-bottom $6 a share, leading at least one major Wall Street firm to recommend buying the shares aggressively. Agere, which begins trading today on the New York Stock Exchange with the ticker AGR, is a world-leading maker of communications semiconductors, but investment bankers struggled for months to close the deal. It will fetch only $3.6 billion, far less than the $6.5 billion Lucent originally sought. Sanford C. Bernstein analysts Paul Sagawa and Matthew Nagle speculated in a research report Friday that Lucent would likely pull the offering, but wrote that if it didnt, We would be aggressive buyers. Debt-burdened Lucent is transferring $2.5 billion of debt to Agere in the deal, and could retire more if a 90 million share Green Shoe is exercised by the underwriters, which are led by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. Only hours before the pricing, IPO followers were skeptical the deal would be done. Theres a lot of doubt that that one will make to the Street, Clint Morrison, head of equity research for Miller Johnson Steichen Kinnard in Minneapolis, said early Tuesday afternoon. Ageres IPO was filed in December, but nearly every passing week has seen the market for technology stocks decline and, with it, interest in this deal ebb. In February Agere set a price range of $15 to $20 for 370.3 million shares. Later that month it slashed the range to $12 to $14 and boosted the number of shares to 500 million. Last week it dropped the price to the current range, and increased the number of shares to 600 million. http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=5197 The Bernstein analysts say a $12 price for the offering would still be a discount to rivals such as JDS Uniphase (JDSU) and Infineon Technologies (IFX). We believe the reduced price range is the product of poor market conditions, negative LU sentiment and the sense of desperation to get the deal done, they wrote in a March 23 research call. If the deal got the green light, however, the Bernstein analysts urged clients to snap it up. In the ($6 to $7) price range, Agere would trade at 2.1 times calendar year 2000 sales of $5.1 billion a 36% and 75% discount to comparables IFX and JDSU, respectively, the wrote. Already a strong business with leading products and attractive margins, we believe Agere will experience strong synergies as an independent company. LUs competitors will be more inclined to purchase components from an independent Agere. Allentown, PA-based Agere manufacturers communications semiconductors, including optoelectronic components and integrated circuits. It calls them the basic building blocks of electronic and photonic products and systems for terrestrial and submarine, or undersea, communications networks and for communications equipment. The 16,500-employee company had revenue in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30 of $4.71 billion, and a loss of $76 million. In addition to Morgan Stanley, the underwriting syndicate includes Bear Stearns, JP Morgan Securities, Salomon Smith Barney, Deutsche Banc Alex Brown, ABN AMRO Rothschild, SG Cowen Securities and Blaylock & Partners. Agere will have 1.64 billion shares outstanding. --------------------------------------- *** IPO MIDWEEK UPDATE FROM IPO EXPRESS*** ---------------------------------------- IPOs on Deck Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group Inc. (SWRG) http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=5349 EDGAR INSIGHT: Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group Inc. of New York, NY, filed March 23 for an IPO. CE Unterberg Towbin is the lead underwriter. The proposed offering is expected to raise $57.5 million. The company will have 8.6 million post-offering shares outstanding. The company is a developer and operator of high-end, high-volume steak restaurants in the United States. The 1,812-employee company had 2000 revenue of $81.5 million and a loss of $6.4 million. Undone Deals Conexant Spinco Inc. (-TBA-) http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=5147 EDGAR INSIGHT: Conexant Spinco Inc. of Newport Beach, CA, filed March 26 to withdraw its IPO. CS First Boston Corp. was the lead underwriter. The proposed offering was expected to raise $100 million. The spinoff of Conextant Systems Inc. (CNXT) develops semiconductor systems for broadband communications. The 1,500-employee company had revenue of $579.2 million for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, and a loss of $232.8 million. Phase2Media Inc. (PTWO) http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=4681 EDGAR INSIGHT: Phase2Media Inc. of New York, NY, filed March 26 to withdraw its IPO. Robertson Stephens Inc. was the lead underwriter. The proposed offering was expected to raise $57.5 million. The company is a leading Internet advertising sales and marketing organization that sells advertising inventory to branded Web publishers. The two year-old company had revenue of $9.3 million for the 12 months ended Mar. 31, 2000 and a net loss of $9.7 million. QK Healthcare Inc. (KRX) http://www.edgar-online.com/ipoexpress/company.asp?company=3910 EDGAR INSIGHT: QK Healthcare Inc. of Ronkonkoma, NY, filed March 26 to withdraw its IPO. Lehman Brothers Inc. was the lead underwriter. The proposed offering was expected to raise $176 million. The company is a national wholesale distributor of selected healthcare products to retailers, wholesale distributors, and pharmacy benefit managers. ---------------------------------------- **VENTURE CAPITAL COMPANY PROFILE** ---------------------------------------- by Udayan Gupta NuGenesis: Pharmaceutical and scientific data management Last year, pharmaceutical companies spent $26.4 billion dollars on R&D, triple the amount spent a decade ago, says the industry trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). A firm that can help drugmakers use their R&D dollars more efficiently should expect to do well. Five year-old NuGenesis Technologies Corporation (www.nugenesis.com) - formerly known as Mantra Software -- designs data management software for science-based organizations. Applicable from research and discovery through manufacturing, it is for use by anyone who views data generated in a lab, or a large volume of data produced by disparate sources. For a pharma, that could be as much as 30% to 40% of their employee base, says Mike McGuinness, president and CEO. Based in Westborough, MA, NuGenesis provides product installation, training for users and administrators, and follow-on support. The software is deployable on a small scale five to 20 users or on an enterprise-wide scale where thousands of individuals contribute to a database. The software can be used to share data sets, graphs and reports. Though most of the firms customers are in pharmaceuticals and biotech, NuGenesis is branching out into medical devices, chemicals and food. We target our software to science-based industries, but the software is applicable to many markets, says McGuinness. NuGenesis has revenues, but no profits. Current clients include Abbott, Eli Lilly, Merk, Pfizer, Genentech, Biogen, DuPont, and Philip Morris, among others. We feel the total market for our products is $5 billion worldwide, that includes all science based industries, says McGuinness. In May 2000, the firm closed on a $25 million round of equity financing. Investors include TA Associates, BancBoston Ventures, Brentwood Venture Capital, Highland Capital, and St. Paul Venture Capital. NuGenesis is not planning any additional funding rounds at this time. Were very well funded, we have plenty of cash, says McGuinness. In February, the 180-employee firm announced it would partner with Oracle to allow users of NuGenesis software to share scientific data online. Competition comes from software giants International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) and Siebel Systems, Inc. (SEBL). *** Siebel Systems (SEBL) revenue grew 120% to nearly $1.8 billion in 2000, according to its 10-K405 filed Monday. Earnings per share doubled to $0.24 from $0.12 in 1999. http://www.edgar-online.com/secrets.asp?d=1006835-0001006835-01-500005 *** Perkin Elmers (PKI) 10-K405 filed on Monday mentioned NuGenesis in its new products summary on chromatography data management software: The seamless flow of TotalChrom data into the NuGenesis(R) SDMS database provides laboratories with an integrated method of data capture and management, the Perkin Elmer filing said. http://www.edgar-online.com/auth/verity/display.asp?query=NuGenesis&filenam… In addition to its Westborough, MA headquarters, NuGenesis has offices in The Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy. Venture Capital Investors: TA Associates BancBoston Ventures Brentwood Venture Capital Highland Capital St. Paul Venture Capital Executive Team: Michael E. McGuinness, president and CEO Ajit Nagral, Founder, EVP Daryl Grabus, CFO Done Deals, Udayans new book about the history of the venture capital industry, is now on sale: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875849385/edgaronline --------ADVERTISEMENT----------------------- EDGAR Online Compensation Express summarizes critical compensation data from SEC filings to create a complete profile of executive pay, including salary, stock options, bonus, and other income, all in one place. Check it out now at http://www.edgar-online.com/compexpress/ -------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------- **COMPANIES MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE*** ---------------------------------------- Abbott ABN AMRO Rothschild AFC Enterprises Agere Systems BancBoston Ventures Bear Stearns Biogen Blaylock & Partners Brentwood Venture Capital CE Unterberg Towbin Churchs Conexant Spinco, Inc Conextant Systems, Inc CS First Boston Corp Deutsche Banc Alex Brown DuPont Eli Lilly Genentech Highland Capital Infineon Technologies International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) JDS Uniphase JP Morgan Securities Lehman Brothers Inc Loudcloud Inc Merk Microsoft Corporation Miller Johnson Steichen Kinnard Morgan Stanley Dean Witter NuGenesis Technologies Corporation (formerly Mantra Software) Perkin Elmer Pfizer Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) Phase2Media Inc Philip Morris Popeyes Restaurants QK Healthcare Inc Robertson Stephens Inc Salomon Smith Barney Sanford C. Bernstein SG Cowen Securities Siebel Systems, Inc Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group Inc St. Paul Venture Capital Stelmar Shipping SureBeam Corp TA Associates ---------------------------------------- **PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE*** ---------------------------------------- Andreessen, Marc Grabus, Daryl McGuinness, Michael E. Morrison, Clint Nagle, Matthew Nagral, Ajit Sagawa, Paul ---------------------------------------- ABOUT THE EDITOR --------------------------------------- IPO SECrets, published every Wednesday, is edited by EDGAR Online Analyst, Timothy Middleton. Timothy has covered business and financial topics for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Dow Jones News Service and Crain's New York Business. Twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in investigative journalism, his weekly business reports can be heard on WCBS Radio and Microsoft MoneyCentral Radio. For press, syndication, and advertising inquiries, contact Group Publisher Hank Berkowitz at hberkowitz(a)edgar-online.com ---------------------------------------- Copyright 2001, EDGAR Online, Inc. http://www.edgar-online.com ISSN# 1533-9068 ---------------------------------------- DISCLAIMER: The EDGAR Online report contains observations of its editor Timothy Middleton, a consultant of EDGAR Online, as well as observations of Udayan Gupta, Bruce Brumberg and other contributors. All observations are for informational purposes only. These statements and expressions are the sole opinions of Mr. Middleton and other contributors and EDGAR Online does not endorse nor necessarily agree on such statements and expressions. Factual statements in this report are made as of the date stated and are subject to change without notice. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to be recommendations to buy, hold or sell securities nor shall it purport to be a complete analysis of the companies mentioned. While the information contained in this Report and the opinions contained herein are based on sources believed to be reliable, neither Mr. Middleton nor EDGAR Online have independently verified the facts, assumptions and/or estimates that may be contained in this Report. Accordingly, no representation or warranty, expressed or implied, is made as to, and no reliance should be placed on, the fairness, accuracy, completeness or correctness of the information and opinions contained in this Report. EDGAR® is a federally registered trademark of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). EDGAR Online is not affiliated with or approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. EDGAR Online is a product of EDGAR Online, Inc. **************************************** UNSUBSCRIBE INSTRUCTIONS **************************************** You are receiving this newsletter because you are a registered user of EDGAR Online. To unsubscribe from the SECrets Newsletter, go to http://www.edgar-online.com/auth/updateinfo.asp and deselect the free newsletter option. If you need your user name or password, go to http://www.edgar-online.com/username.asp For help contact: mailto:support@edgar-online.com **************************************** Email Distribution Services for EDGAR Online provided by DoubleClick DARTmail.

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Inferno: Inforworld QOTD (fwd)
by Jim Choate 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 15:13:51 -0500 From: Any Mouse Reply-To: hell(a)ssz.com To: The Club Inferno <hell(a)einstein.ssz.com> Subject: Inferno: Inforworld QOTD QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Privacy is one of those things, like water and air (and electricity in California), that you don't think about too much until it's gone. But once you lose it or it's in short supply, you realize just how important it is." --In his Ethics Matters column, Carlton Vogt gives his take on how the Bush administration will deal with the thorny question of online privacy. http://www.infoworld.com/articles/op/xml/01/03/23/010323opethics.xml?0328we… ____________________________________________________________________ If the law is based on precedence, why is the Constitution not the final precedence since it's the primary authority? The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage(a)ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------

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Re: semi-anon test from a throwaway account part deux
by Anonymous Coredump 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- On Wed, 28 Mar 2001, Morlock Elloi wrote: > There is no anonymizer/webmail combination that works, AFAIK. The barrier > are the cookies. They're not stoopid. Anonymizer.com does cookie blocking with the premium accounts, I believe. - -MW- -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.0.4 (GNU/Linux) Comment: No comment. iQEVAwUBOsI4fCsFU3q6vVI9AQFLfgf/YJUEwXjnYLej6gHXSa0O+FhyW+n6kobi 9XyHvZusYyYu8bqllyxhKB4GY07R7BPg5PQXY3o2DnIgJHO4ZMXOi9p38XHGUdb4 76FiTDbb7DbNO4ingp7RfKZP5f7OQgl0P3SpzsVXzi2o26f+ng74mBHW22Ezwa4R qXQ5YTwyAdbeFTL2t/+N8H9vhAEgVWNZwD6rPvX8MGxsUaEtykFxCL8gwhmgVwv4 x+ZFgKOiNUC0Eslf+Ji6imekDTjeUBnjbF9lVwE/kMKZlNrqlLZJOMVvQ7zXaj+g Ojoe6g8hSyZlEfSqtKiZ6eKGO1bCLIw/kiiicIRUeypiIBYoKYbZsQ== =ulEV -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

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The Cryptography Mailing List Returns... (fwd)
by Jim Choate 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

____________________________________________________________________ If the law is based on precedence, why is the Constitution not the final precedence since it's the primary authority? The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage(a)ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- -------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: 28 Mar 2001 17:10:11 -0500 From: "Perry E. Metzger" <perry(a)wasabisystems.com> To: cryptography(a)wasabisystems.com Subject: The Cryptography Mailing List Returns... The Cryptography Mailing List has been resurrected. New submission address: cryptography(a)wasabisystems.com A great deal of mail has queued up for the list in the last four weeks. I may or may not forward bunches of it depending on continued relevance. "We apologize for the inconvenience." -- Perry E. Metzger perry(a)wasabisystems.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- The Cryptography Mailing List Unsubscribe by sending "unsubscribe cryptography" to majordomo(a)wasabisystems.com

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Re: Zone On the Range
by Trei, Peter 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

> Declan McCullagh[SMTP:declan@well.com] > Jim is about as educable as a California politican, and even less > friendly. > > He has shifted from being an eccentric list member to something closer > to a list-saboteur. > > -Declan > This thought has occurred to me, too. At least once a month, a large chunk of the junk traffic on cpunks is a direct result of Jim's actions - either directly posted by him, or by people discussing his almost universally perceived lack of clue (this message and thread are an example of this). He is, (in my opinion) a non-asset to this group. Peter Trei #include <std.disclaimer>

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Fwd: Barr Works to Reform Secret Evidence Laws
by Declan McCullagh 28 Mar '01

28 Mar '01

>From: "Walsh, Brian J" <Brian.J.Walsh(a)mail.house.gov> >Subject: Barr Works to Reform Secret Evidence Laws >Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 13:14:17 -0500 >X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2653.19) > > > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: > > Brian Walsh >WEDNESDAY MARCH 28, 2001 >202-225-2931 > >Barr Works to Reform Secret Evidence Laws >Joins Colleagues in Introducing Bipartisan Legislation to >Protect Fifth Amendment Rights > > WASHINGTON D.C. -- U.S. Representative Bob Barr (GA-7) joined House >Minority Whip David Bonior (MI-10) and Rep. Tom Davis (VA-11), Chairman of >the National Republican Congressional Committee, at a news conference on >Capitol Hill this morning to introduce bipartisan legislation addressing the >use of secret evidence in immigration proceedings. > > "The use of secret evidence in immigration proceedings not only >violates basic principles of fundamental fairness, but it is also blatantly >unconstitutional," Barr said. "A cornerstone of our judicial system is the >right of individuals to view and respond to evidence used against them. >This legislation reaffirms the Fifth Amendment's guarantee that no person >shall be deprived of liberty without due process." > > Currently, the Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes the >Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to use classified information >in political asylum and deportation cases. The evidence is not disclosed to >the immigrant or their counsel. Under the proposed legislation, a federal >district court judge would be presented with the government's classified >evidence and would then provide an unclassified summary to the immigration >judge and to the defendant. No classified information would be revealed and >the defendant would have access to the same information as the immigration >judge who would decide the case. > > "This bill is about fairness and freedom for all those living under >the U.S. Constitution," Barr said. "I look forward to working with my >colleagues on both sides of the aisle to ensure this legislation is signed >into law." > > During the second presidential debate last year, President Bush >indicated his support for ending the use of secret evidence. The >Bonior-Barr legislation, specifically, is supported by a number of advocacy >groups from across the political spectrum, including the ACLU, the American >Bar Association, Americans for Tax Reform, and all major Arab and Muslim >organizations. > >Barr, a former federal prosecutor, represents Georgia's Seventh District. >He serves on the House Financial Services, Judiciary, and Government Reform >Committees. >--30--

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