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December 5, 2009

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Editorial: First Amendment, privacy win in case

Thursday, April 11, 2002 | 9:05 a.m.

In an important gain for both privacy rights and the First Amendment, on Monday the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that a bookstore in that state didn't have to give up customer sales records to a local police department, which had sought them in a drug investigation. Even though the police wanted to protect the community from drug trafficking, the ends didn't justify the means.

The court, in its unanimous decision, wrote that the U.S. and Colorado constitutions "protect an individual's fundamental right to purchase books anonymously, free from governmental interference." In addition, the court noted that when a customer buys a book, he "engages in activity protected by the First Amendment because he is exercising his right to read and receive ideas and information." In a time when there is more intrusion into our private lives, it is reassuring to see a court uphold cherished freedoms.

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