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Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status

Description: This report examines initial responses to the 9/11 Commission's call for a board to oversee adherence to presidential guidelines on information sharing that safeguard the privacy of individuals about whom information is shared, and the implementation of this board.
Date: July 21, 2008
Creator: Relyea, Harold C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act: A Sketch of Selected Issues

Description: This report briefly outlines three issues relating to electronic surveillance under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and touches upon some of the perspectives reflected in the ongoing debate. These issues include the inherent and often dynamic tension between national security and civil liberties, particularly rights of privacy and free speech; the need for the intelligence community to be able to efficiently and effectively collect foreign intelligence information from the comm… more
Date: July 7, 2008
Creator: Bazan, Elizabeth B.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Satellite Surveillance: Domestic Issues

Description: This report provides background on the development of intelligence satellites and identifies the roles various agencies play in their management and use. Issues surrounding the current policy and proposed changes are discussed, including the findings of an Independent Study Group (ISG) with respect to the increased sharing of satellite intelligence data. There follows a discussion of legal considerations, including whether satellite reconnaissance might constitute a "search" within the meaning … more
Date: June 27, 2008
Creator: Best, Richard A., Jr. & Elsea, Jennifer K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Data Security: Federal Legislative Approaches

Description: This report discusses the core areas addressed in federal legislation, including the scope of coverage (who is covered and what information is covered); data privacy and security safeguards for sensitive personal information; requirements for security breach notification (when, how, triggers, frequency, and exceptions); restrictions on social security numbers (collection, use, and sale); credit freezes on consumer reports; identity theft penalties; causes of action; and preemption.
Date: June 6, 2008
Creator: Stevens, Gina Marie
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Immigration-Related Detention: Current Legislative Issues

Description: This report examines policy issues surrounding detention of aliens, including concerns about the number of aliens subject to mandatory detention and the justness of mandatory detention, especially as it is applied to asylum seekers arriving without proper documentation. Some have raised concerns about the length of time in detention for aliens who have been ordered removed. Additionally, issues have been raised about the amount of detention space available to house DHS detainees. Another area o… more
Date: January 30, 2008
Creator: Siskin, Alison
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The War Crimes Act: Current Issues

Description: This report discusses current issues related to the War Crimes Act of 1996 and Common Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, which sets out minimum standards for the treatment of detainees in armed conflicts "not of an international character (e.g., civil wars, rebellions, and other conflicts between State and non-State actors).
Date: January 28, 2008
Creator: Garcia, Michael J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Interrogation of Detainees: Overview of the McCain Amendment

Description: Controversy has arisen regarding U.S. treatment of enemy combatants and terrorist suspects detained in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, and whether such treatment complies with U.S. statutes and treaties such as the U.N. Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the 1949 Geneva Conventions. Congress approved additional guidelines concerning the treatment of detainees via the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA), which was enact… more
Date: October 2, 2006
Creator: Garcia, Michael John
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Interrogation of Detainees: Overview of the McCain Amendment

Description: Controversy has arisen regarding U.S. treatment of enemy combatants and terrorist suspects detained in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, and whether such treatment complies with U.S. statutes and treaties such as the U.N. Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the 1949 Geneva Conventions. Congress approved additional guidelines concerning the treatment of detainees via the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA), which was enact… more
Date: September 25, 2006
Creator: Garcia, Michael John
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Interrogation of Detainees: Overview of the McCain Amendment

Description: Controversy has arisen regarding U.S. treatment of enemy combatants and terrorist suspects detained in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, and whether such treatment complies with U.S. statutes and treaties such as the U.N. Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the 1949 Geneva Conventions. Congress approved additional guidelines concerning the treatment of detainees via the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA), which was enact… more
Date: September 25, 2006
Creator: Garcia, Michael John
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Interrogation of Detainees: Overview of the McCain Amendment

Description: Controversy has arisen regarding U.S. treatment of enemy combatants and terrorist suspects detained in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, and whether such treatment complies with U.S. statutes and treaties such as the U.N. Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the 1949 Geneva Conventions. Congress approved additional guidelines concerning the treatment of detainees via the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA), which was enact… more
Date: September 20, 2006
Creator: Garcia, Michael J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Interrogation of Detainees: Overview of the McCain Amendment

Description: This report discusses the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA), which contains provisions that (1) require Department of Defense (DOD) personnel to employ United States Army Field Manual guidelines while interrogating detainees, and (2) prohibit the “cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment of persons under the detention, custody, or control of the United States Government.” These provisions of the DTA, which were first introduced by Senator John McCain, have popularly been referred to as t… more
Date: September 20, 2006
Creator: Garcia, Michael J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Gun Legislation in the 109th Congress

Description: This report discusses the gun legislation in the 190th Congress. It presents the views of a contentious debate, with strong advocates for and against the further federal regulation of firearms.
Date: August 4, 2006
Creator: Krouse, William J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Habeas Corpus: An Abridged Sketch

Description: This report discusses federal habeas corpus, which is a procedure under which a federal court may review the legality of an individual’s incarceration. It is most often invoked after conviction and the exhaustion of the ordinary means of appeal. It is at once the last refuge of scoundrels and the last hope of the innocent. It is an intricate weave of statute and case law whose reach has flowed and ebbed over time.
Date: April 28, 2006
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Habeas Corpus: A Brief Legal Overview

Description: This report discusses Federal habeas corpus, which is a procedure under which a federal court may review the legality of an individual’s incarceration. It is most often the stage of the criminal appellate process that follows direct appeal and any available state collateral review.
Date: April 26, 2006
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Habeas Corpus Relief: Background, Legislation, and Issues

Description: This report examines the issues surrounding the debate on whether to further restrict state prisoners’ access to federal habeas corpus filings. This report does not discuss issues related to federalism and the proper role of the federal court system in overseeing the actions of state courts pertaining to prisoners’ constitutional rights. The report opens with a discussion of a commission that was established in 1988 to study and make recommendations of the then-current federal habeas corpus sys… more
Date: February 1, 2006
Creator: Seghetti, Lisa M. & James, Nathan
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Interrogation of Detainees: Overview of the McCain Amendment

Description: This report discusses the recent controversy that has arisen regarding U.S. treatment of enemy combatants and terrorist suspects detained in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, and whether such treatment complies with U.S. statutes and treaties such as the U.N. Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). Congress recently approved additional guidelines concerning the treatment of detainees. The Department of Defense, Emergency… more
Date: January 24, 2006
Creator: Garcia, Michael John
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Judge Samuel Alito's Opinions in Freedom of Speech Cases

Description: This report examines his major judicial opinions, both for the majority and in dissent, in freedom of speech cases. It also briefly discusses some cases in which he joined the opinion for the court but did not write it. This report examines Judge Alito’s free speech opinions by subject area.
Date: December 9, 2005
Creator: Cohen, Henry
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Property Rights "Takings": Justice O'Connor's Opinions

Description: When Justice O’Connor ascended to the Supreme Court, expectations were that she would adhere to the conservative line and generally uphold the property rights position over the government’s in Fifth Amendment “takings” cases. This did not happen. Instead, in this area as well as others, she established her place at the Court’s ideological center. To be sure, Justice O’Connor made many arguments favoring property owners, in both her opinions and her concurrences and dissents. But this asserted e… more
Date: August 19, 2005
Creator: Meltz, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Freedom of Information Act Amendments: 109th Congress

Description: This report discusses the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which was designed to enable any person — individual or corporate, regardless of citizenship — to request, without explanation or justification, presumptive access to existing, identifiable, unpublished, executive branch agency records on any topic.
Date: February 25, 2005
Creator: Relyea, Harold C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Medical Records Privacy: Questions and Answers on the HIPAA Rule

Description: This report discuses the HIPAA privacy rule, which gives patients the right of access to their medical information and prohibits health plans and health care providers from using or disclosing individually identifiable health information without a patient’s written authorization except as expressly permitted or required by the rule.
Date: February 4, 2005
Creator: Redhead, C. S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Medical Records Privacy: Questions and Answers on the HIPAA Final Rule

Description: This report discusses the issue facing Congress on whether to continue to support the executive branch’s prosecution of medical marijuana patients and their providers, in accordance with marijuana’s status as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, or whether to relax federal marijuana prohibition enough to permit the medical use of botanical cannabis products by seriously ill persons, especially in states that have created medical marijuana programs under state law.
Date: March 10, 2004
Creator: Redhead, C. Stephen
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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