Costanzo Press Release on Supreme Court Decision
Hardy Macia
COSTANZO FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL
P.O. Box 276, Randolph, VT 05060;
Tel: 802-234-6908; e-mail: se...@sover.net
PRESS RELEASE August 9, 1998
COSTANZO WILL NOT PERMIT ELECTRONIC SURVEILLANCE ON PRIVATE PROPERTY
Libertarian Party candidate for Attorney General of Vermont, Chris Costanzo,
criticized today the Vermont Supreme Court opinion of July 31, 1998
upholding the authority of the police to institute electronic surveillance
on non-posted private property without a warrant. "I deeply regret,"
Costanzo said, "that our current Attorney General, William Sorrell, asked
the Vermont Supreme Court to grant such power to the police. And I am
appalled that our court did it. It is a violation of our basic property
rights."
Costanzo has pledged that he will put an end to warrantless electronic
surveillance on private property. "Even though the courts now permit such
surveillance without specific court warrants," Costanzo said, "as an elected
Attorney General acting within my discretionary authority, I will refuse to
use evidence so gathered in any prosecution.
Costanzo recognized that the court opinion only applies to non-posted
property. He also acknowledged the principle that members of the public who
enter unmarked private property should not be liable for trespass, since
they have no way of knowing whether any land might be privately owned and
closed to them.
"But the police are not the public," Costanzo said. "They have a
responsibility to ensure that their activities do not infringe on the
property and privacy rights of our citizens. The police certainly know that
they are infringing on private property against the will of the owners
whenever they install such clandestine surveillance devices. Therefore,
warrants are clearly required." Costanzo added that he strongly objects to
the far-fetched reasoning of the court that if an owner does not fence or
post his private property he therefore has no reasonable expectation of
privacy from the government.
"If elected Attorney General, I will surely put an end to police
electronic surveillance on private property without a specific court
warrant," Costanzo added. "Vermonters will once again have a reasonable
expectation of privacy from their government."
Last month, Costanzo also said that as Attorney General he will not
enforce the Act 60 confiscation and redistribution scheme against those
towns that refuse to abide by it.
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Vermont Libertarian Party - http://www.catamount.com/VTLP/