City Police Spied Broadly Before G.O.P. Convention

[Miss Chybil]

Source: New York Times

By JIM DWYER
Published: March 25, 2007
For at least a year before the 2004 Republican National Convention, teams of undercover New York City police officers traveled to cities across the country, Canada and Europe to conduct covert observations of people who planned to protest at the convention, according to police records and interviews.

snip

But potential troublemakers were hardly the only ones to end up in the files. In hundreds of reports stamped “N.Y.P.D. Secret,” the Intelligence Division chronicled the views and plans of people who had no apparent intention of breaking the law, the records show.

These included members of street theater companies, church groups and antiwar organizations, as well as environmentalists and people opposed to the death penalty, globalization and other government policies. Three New York City elected officials were cited in the reports.

In at least some cases, intelligence on what appeared to be lawful activity was shared with police departments in other cities. A police report on an organization of artists called Bands Against Bush noted that the group was planning concerts on Oct. 11, 2003, in New York, Washington, Seattle, San Francisco and Boston. Between musical sets, the report said, there would be political speeches and videos.

MUCH MORE...

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/25/nyregion/25infiltrate.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

[Canuckistanian]

1. This was big news on Canadian CBC radio tonight

The fact that NYC cops were conducting surveillance on Canadians illegally.

Not that it was just illegal here, but also illegal in the country of their origin.

[L. Coyote]

3. How do you spell "extradiction" in French?

Charges may be brought against these political criminals in Canada, eh?

[Altean Wanderer]

2. Holy shit. This is BIG. Is it Fascism yet?

The implications of what's reported in this NT Times article are stunning. The NYPD operating in Canada and across the US, spying on peaceful activists, the line between Federal and Local Police / Military control is being blurred here. And you can be sure this article is just the tip of the iceberg.

[2008]

4. k&r (nt)

[Miss Chybil]

5. Maybe, someone could explain to me why this does not qualify

as LBN. I'm confused. It was moved from LBN. What am I missing, so I know for the future.

[donsu]

6. couple of yrs. ago NYC cops started an office in Europe

can't remember which country. and I asked here at DU, whyever would they do that? didn't get any replys. guess now we know why.

whose idea was it? did the citizens of NYC want this?