JANET RENO 'VIOLATES BRADY LAW,' SAYS NATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT
Contact: Carl Mica of the Law Enforcement Alliance of America
FALLS CHURCH, Va., March 16 /U.S. Newswire/ -- ``U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno is violating key provisions of federal law: her actions impose tremendous potential liability on federal law enforcement officers, by establishing illegal dossier-making practices against law-abiding gun owners, and invading the privacy of Americans.
The FBI is illegally keeping a registry of firearms transactions by retaining records generated by the National Instant Check System. The Law Enforcement Alliance of America (LEAA) has joined a lawsuit to stop this blatant violation of federal law,'' said James J. Fotis, executive director, LEAA.
LEAA's participation in this lawsuit is driven by the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ's) decision to force federal officers to violate federal law related to the National Instant Check System (NICS) contained in the Brady Act. Section 103(i) of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act provides that no federal agency may require the federal government, states or any other entity to record or transfer this information. Further, it forbids that such information be used to establish any system of registration of firearms, firearms owners or firearms transactions.
``Obviously, Janet Reno is in clear violation of the law by storing data on lawful gun buyers, and she is forcing law enforcement agents to be her pawns thereby also breaking the law. No one is above the law in America -- especially not Attorney General Reno -- yet she is ignoring the law for shear political reasons. She is illegally and unconstitutionally creating a national registry of gun owners, rather than focusing on prosecuting violent criminals who use guns illegally,'' said Fotis.
``The aim of this lawsuit is to protect our members -- and the interests of all law enforcement -- from the unlawful activity brought on by Reno's defiance of federal law,'' said Fotis.
``The United States Congress has voted on this issue on two occasions. Now Attorney General Reno is trying to thwart congressional action and circumvent the law. We cannot stand by and watch the security and integrity of our law enforcement officers sacrificed for selfish, politically motivated ends. We need to stop politicians from ignoring laws for political purposes, and protect the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect us. LEAA's lawsuit will help protect federal law enforcement agents who are vulnerable to liability if they are compelled to carry out Attorney General Reno's illegal mandates'' said Fotis.
``The Law Enforcement Alliance of America is taking a stand against the Attorney General, taking a stand against the willful disregard of federal law. LEAA hopes that the United States Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit Court will, as a result of the oral arguments on March 17, will render a decision that reflects both the simplistic nature of the dispute, and stops the continuing illegal and overbearing tactics of the Clinton Justice Department,'' concluded Fotis.