The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (which could be considered an oxymoron by some), in a two-page executive summary, revealed travelers near the nation’s borders can have their electronic devices seized for any reason.

Editor’s note: be sure to read Brent’s latest articles “Companies fire back in nationwide 2nd Amendment debate” and “Plethora of cities, counties and states seeking to nullify the NDAA“

In 2009, the DHS, one of the responsibilities of which is securing our borders, stated it would conduct a “Civil Liberties Assessment” into its policy of suspicionless search-and-seizures of electronic devices.

While the assessment was originally supposed to be delivered in around 120 days, it actually took three years of waiting before the review was issued.

“We also conclude that imposing a requirement that officers have reasonable suspicion in order to conduct a border search of an electronic device would be operationally harmful without concomitant civil rights/civil liberties benefits,” the executive summary stated.

The suspicionless search-and-seizure policy began in 2008 under the Bush administration.

In that year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), an agency under the umbrella of the DHS, declared CBP had the right to search laptops, electronic devices and printed material of any traveler (U.S. citizen or non-citizen) at the border, “absent individualized suspicion.”

So far the same policy is being continued under President Barack Obama.

Continue reading at:  http://endthelie.com/2013/02/27/dhs-states-electronic-devices-can-b...