[EPIC's letter is 23 pages and is excerpted below. --Declan]
http://epic.org/privacy/justices/roberts/0905letter.pdf
We urge you to explore the views of Judge Roberts on the right to
privacy, particularly as they may relate to the future of the Fourth
Amendment and the role of the Congress inestablishing statutory
safeguards. Although Judge Roberts is a distinguished lawyer and a
brilliant jurist, we believe that he may have a very limited view of
both the Court’s role inprotecting Constitutional rights and of the
ability of the Congress and the states to defend privacy through
legislation.
In focusing on other important issues, one disturbing and
well-documented aspect of Judge Robert's past opinions and memos has
been substantially ignored. In the contemporary environment,
Constitutional and statutory protections of privacy are more vital than
ever. Fear of terrorism has prompted a substantial increase in
government surveillance.
Technological change and lax corporate data security have made privacy a
matter of pressing legislative concern. Given the dramatic expansion of
the government's surveillance capabilities during the last several years
and the likelihood that the issues the Supreme Court will face in the
next few decades will be heavily influenced by the advance of
technology, we believe it is important to understand how the nominee
views the relationship between Constitutional principles and emerging
threats to privacy. This is not simply the question of whether the
Supreme Courtbroadly applies Constitutional principles; it includes also
whether the Justices are prepared to defer to the Congress and the
states when they seek to protect the privacy rights of individuals. On
this point as well, we are concerned about the views of Judge Roberts.
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