Thursday, October 07, 2004

Small Town Library Takes On The Feds

At the center of the issue, a book titled "Bin Laden: The Man Who Declared War on America."
The FBI confiscated the original book after a patron reported than some one hand wrote a bin Laden quote in the margin that read: "Let history be witness I am a criminal."
The FBI demanded to know the names and addresses of everyone who ever checked out the book.
"Libraries are a haven where people should be able to seek whatever information they want to pursue without any threat of government intervention," said Director of Whatcom County Library System, Joan Airoldi.
Because of privacy policies, the library does not give out circulation records without a court order. When the FBI got a grand jury subpoena, the library filed a motion to quash it -- citing the rights of all people who use the library.

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