Did you know government wire taps are not a new issue? The government wire tapped the phone lines during prohibition without a warrant. A man from Washington state named Roy Olmsted was raided by federal agents. He was arrested for violation of the national prohibition act. Posted $50,000 bail. Sued the phone company for allowing this unauthorized surveillance. Later, a federal judge deemed the transcripts from the wire taps, the whispering wires, admissible evidence. Roy Olmsted was found guilty. Fined $9,000 dollars. Sentenced to 4 years hard labor. Roy Olmsted later took his case to the US Supreme Court. They upheld the conviction decision by 5-4 decision. The US Supreme Court later reversed itself. Roy Olmsted received a presidential pardon. This was the beginnings of Americans right to privacy. Law enforce would need warrants to conduct authorized surveillance in criminal cases. - Ken Burns: Probation on Netflix-
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 13:33:01 +0000
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