Editorial: Suspects have privacy rights

Monday, Aug. 13, 2007 | 7:13 a.m.

U .S. Navy Capt. Lisa M. Nowak is asking a Florida court to allow her to remove an electronic monitoring device from her ankle because, among other things, the company that makes the device has been using her case for marketing purposes.

Nowak, a former astronaut, was charged with attempted kidnapping in February. She is accused of driving from Texas to Florida to confront a woman who was romantically involved with another astronaut, with whom Nowak had had an affair.

While she is out on bail and awaiting trial, Nowak is required to wear an electronic ankle bracelet that allows authorities to keep track of her whereabouts. A story by The New York Times on Friday says that Nowak has filed papers in Florida Circuit Court in Orlando saying that the bracelet is adversely affecting her personally, physically and financially.

The bracelet cannot be immersed in water, which Nowak says prevents her from adequately supervising her children in the swimming pool, the Times reported. She also says it hinders her from running to maintain her Navy-required level of fitness and does not fit inside her Navy-issue boots.

But these are not the claims that we find disturbing.

What is unsettling is Nowak's assertion that the company that manufactures the bracelet - to which Nowak must pay $105 a week for its use - has used the notoriety of her case to draw publicity. Court documents say that the company has invited news reporters to view Nowak's exact location on a remote monitoring terminal, the Times reported.

If this is true, it is wrong and an invasion of Nowak's privacy.