Objections raised over terrorism bill

Thursday, Feb. 27, 2003 | 9:43 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- An anti-terrorism bill could be used by ambitious district attorneys to prosecute people who take part in a large labor union strike or against lawyers who defend those accused of terrorism, critics said Wednesday.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Sierra Club argued before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday that major changes are needed in Senate Bill 38, which defines terrorism as a new crime and provides enhanced penalties.

But Gerald Gardner, chief of the criminal division in the state attorney general's office, said his office supports the legislation.

He is "deeply concerned about Nevada's vulnerability to terrorism," Gardner said.

Gardner noted that investigators have said terrorists were in Las Vegas before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. If they plotted the attack while in Nevada, Gardner said, they would be subject to a prison term of 20 years to life under the new bill. Under the old system, they could only have been charged with conspiracy, which carries a term of two to 10 years, Gardner said.

Gardner said the bill would not affect lawful demonstrations.

"This legislation was written to address the violent terrorist, not those involved in peaceful lawful demonstrations or exercising their First Amendment rights," he said.

Gardner said he agreed that prosecutors must exercise caution not to use the proposed law against people who simply express anti-government views.

The committee put off further consideration for two weeks while amendments are prepared for the legislation proposed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno.

Joe Johnson, a representative of the Sierra Club, said the bill could affect people who work with natural resources. He said he has worked in geology most of his life and has collected ore samples that contain uranium, which has radioactive elements.

Under the bill, this could be called an act of terrorism, he said. The bill makes it a crime to possess biological, chemical or radioactive agents.

Richard Siegel, president of the ACLU of Nevada, said he believes the bill would infringe on the right to free speech. He noted that the bill defines an act of terrorism as a "disruption," or anything that affects government policy by intimidation or coercion.

He said the 80,000 people who sent e-mails to the government protesting the war could fall into this category. He said it could also apply to the protests that have taken place in Elko County in recent years against the U.S. Forest Service and its decision to close a road because of a threatened fish in a nearby stream.

Siegel said one section of the bill makes it a crime to hinder, delay or obstruct the prosecution of a terrorist. Defense attorneys often do this and so they could be charged under the bill, he said.

The bill also states that aiding the cause of terrorism could be considered an aggravating circumstance in a murder and could be used to seek the death penalty for the offender.