Freedom Lawyers of America

Photographer Arrested For
Taking Pics Near Cheney Hotel
2600 News
12-5-2

An amateur photographer named Mike Maginnis was arrested on
Tuesday in his home city of Denver - for simply taking pictures of buildings
in an area where Vice President Cheney was residing.
Maginnis told his story on Wednesday's edition of Off The Hook.
Maginnis's morning commute took him past the Adams Mark Hotel on Court
Place. Maginnis, who says he always carried his camera wherever he went,
snapped about 30 pictures of the hotel and the surrounding area - which
included Denver police, Army rangers, and rooftop snipers. Maginnis, who
works in information technology, frequently photographs such subjects as
corporate buildings and communications equipment.
The following is Maginnis's account of what transpired: As he was
putting his camera away, Maginnis found himself confronted by a Denver
police officer who demanded that he hand over his film and camera. When he
refused to give up his Nikon F2, the officer pushed him to the ground and
arrested him. After being brought to the District 1 police station on
Decatur Street, Maginnis was made to wait alone in an interrogation room.
Two hours later, a Secret Service agent arrived, who identified himself as
Special Agent "Willse." The agent told Maginnis that his "suspicious
activities" made him a threat to national security, and that he would be
charged as a terrorist under the USA-PATRIOT act.
The Secret Service agent tried to make Maginnis admit that he was
taking the photographs to analyze weaknesses in the Vice President's
security entourage and "cause terror and mayhem." When Maginnis refused to
admit to being any sort of terrorist, the Secret Service agent called him a
"raghead collaborator" and a "dirty pinko faggot."
After approximately an hour of interrogation, Maginnis was allowed
to make a telephone call. Rather than contacting a lawyer, he called the
Denver Post and asked for the news desk. This was immediately overheard by
the desk sergeant, who hung up the phone and placed Maginnis in a holding
cell. Three hours later, Maginnis was finally released, but with no
explanation. He received no copy of an arrest report, and no receipt for his
confiscated possessions. He was told that he would probably not get his
camera back, as it was being held as evidence. Maginnis's lawyer contacted
the Denver Police Department for an explanation of the day's events, but the
police denied ever having Maginnis - or anyone matching his description - in
custody.
At press time, the Denver PD's Press Information Office did not
return telephone messages left by 2600. The new police powers introduced by
the USA-PATRIOT act, in the name of fighting terrorism, have been
frightening in their apparent potential for abuse. Mike Maginnis's
experience on Tuesday is a poignant example of how this abuse is beginning
to occur. It suggests that a wide range of activities which might be
considered "suspicious" could be suddenly labeled a prelude to terrorism,
and be grounds for arrest. We will continue to post updates to this story as
we learn them.


Police Detainment of a Patient Following Treatment With Radioactive Iodine
http://jama.ama-assn.org/issues/v288n21/ffull/jlt1204-3.html

To the Editor: We recently treated a 34-year-old man for Graves
disease with 20 mCi of iodine 131. Twenty-four hours after treatment,
his radioactive iodine uptake was 63%. Three weeks after treatment,
he returned to our clinic complaining that he had been strip-searched
twice at Manhattan subway stations. Police had identified him as
emitting radiation and had detained him for further questioning. He
returned to the clinic and requested a letter stating that he had
recently been treated with radioactive iodine.

This patient's experience indicates that radiation detection devices
are being installed in public places in New York City and perhaps
elsewhere. Patients who have been treated with radioactive iodine or
other isotopes may be identified and interrogated by the police
because of the radiation they emit.

We called the Terrorism Task Force of the New York City Police
Department to determine how to prevent detainment of this group of
patients. They recommended that treating physicians provide such
patients with letters describing the isotope used and its dose, its
biological half-life, and the date and time of treatment. The letters
should also provide the physician's 24-hour telephone numbers to
allow the police to verify the content of the letters. If a person
who has been detected as emitting radiation provides such a letter,
the police would then verify the letter's authenticity. Even in the
best-case scenario, however, the patient would have to wait during
this verification process. Patients should be informed about this
potential problem after treatment with radioactive isotopes; they may
choose not to use public transportation to avoid this inconvenience.

Christoph Buettner, MD, PhD
Martin I. Surks, MD
Department of Medicine
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
New York, NY

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