This is the New Version of Civil Liberties resolution.
We the undersigned,
request that the Las Cruces City Council consider and pass the following resolution:
Resolved: The Las Cruces City Council affirms its belief in the United states
Constitution and Bill of Rights and states that the people of Las Cruces are
protected by these mandates in peace time as in war time.
RETURN to CURRENT RESOLUTION PAGE
This is the Old Version of the Civil Liberties Resolution for Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Presented to City Hall on March 17, 2003.
32. WHEREAS, the City of Las Cruces and its citizens are governed by the United
States Constitution, including the Bill of Rights, and the New Mexico State
Constitution; and
33. WHEREAS, Las Cruces has a long tradition of protecting and expanding human
rights and civil liberties for all of its residents, including non-citizens
and the recently immigrated; and
34. WHEREAS, fundamental rights granted by the United States Constitution under
the 1st 4th, 5th and, 6th amendments are threatened by actions taken at the
federal level, notably by passage of sections of the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act
(Acronym: "Uniting & Strengthening America Providing Appropriate
Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act") and
several Executive Orders; and
35. WHEREAS, the First Amendment of the United States Constitution DECLARES
that no law be made "respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting
the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;
or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government
for a redress of grievances;" and
36. WHEREAS, the Fourth Amendment declares that "the right of the
people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable
searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but
upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing
the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized;" and
37. WHEREAS, the Fifth Amendment declares that no person "shall be
compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself;" and
38. WHEREAS, the Sixth Amendment guarantees defendants "the right
to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury, and to be informed of the
nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against
him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to
have the assistance of counsel for his defense;" and
39. WHEREAS, the Eighth Amendment declares that "excessive bail shall
not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments
inflicted;" and
40. WHEREAS, the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the government from denying
"to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws;"
and
41. WHEREAS, the City of Las Cruces adheres to the principle that no law enforcement
agency, or any other city agency, may profile or discriminate against any person
solely on the basis of ancestry, race, ethnic or national origin, color, age,
sexual orientation, gender, religion, or physical or mental disability;
42. WHEREAS, the City of Las Cruces wants to recognize the commitment it has
to uphold the legal and human rights of its residents;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:
43. That the municipal government of Las Cruces, on behalf of its residents,
hereby asserts the supremacy of the United States Constitution and its first
ten amendments commonly known as the Bill of Rights, as the fundament of all
law and order in these United States, and guarantees each and all of its residents
the protections guaranteed therein;
44. That Las Cruces municipal employees and elected officials shall be obliged
to protect the human rights and civil liberties of all Las Cruces residents
and shall be prohibited from enforcing any federal policies contrary to the
principles enunciated herein; and
45. That it shall be a matter of public record, free and accessible to all,
of the names of detainees held in Las Cruces or of Las Cruces residents held
in custody elsewhere, and of the circumstances leading to such detention, and
of the charges (if any) lodged against each detainee, and of the name of counsel
representing each detainee, and if no counsel is so named, a public defender
shall be appointed within 12 hours of the detention, as regards any and all
detentions under the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act of 2001.
46. That it shall be a matter of public record in the city of Las Cruces of
the number of search warrants issued in the city pursuant to Section 213 of
the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act and;
47. That the city government deplores and vows to enumerate the number of times
and the circumstances under which the rights of privacy of our residents have
been violated by library records being seized from our libraries under Section
215 of the aforesaid "USA PATRIOT Act" and;
48. That the municipal government opposes federal intrusion upon and demands
an accounting of the number of times, and the specific details of each, seizure
of records from public schools and institutions of higher learning in Las Cruces
under Section 507 of the aforementioned U.S.A. PATRIOT Act of 2001; and
49. That the city shall demand from the FBI, CIA, military or United States
attorney an accounting of each and every instance of federal monitoring of First
Amendment protected political meetings, or religious gatherings, or First Amendment
protected citizenship gatherings of any nature or size, which are monitored
by federal agents under the aforesaid Patriot Act or any policies created by
the Department of Justice or other federal agencies under the cloak thereof.