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Opinion column
by Murrel Bland
U.S. Rep. Kevin Yoder, R-3rd Dist., said he is proud of two pieces of federal legislation he is supporting that are moving ahead. One would require a court-ordered search warrant before government could access an individual’s cell phone records. The other would require a cell phone company to cooperate with law enforcement officials in a search for a person who has been abducted.
The congressman spoke at the Congressional Forum Friday, June 17, at The Venue at Willow Creek in Kansas City, Kan. The forum is a committee of the Kansas City, Kansas, Area Chamber of Commerce.
The issue concerning the government’s authority to obtain information from cell phone records came to a head when federal officials were seeking information from the cell phone records of those who killed several persons late last year in San Bernardino, Calif.
The proposed law concerning a “ping” locator has a local connection. Kelsey Ann Smith of Overland Park was abducted in 2007 near Oak Park Mall and taken to a wooded area near Longview Lake in Missouri where she was raped and killed.
“Kelsey’s Law” allows a cell phone company to ping a cell phone if law enforcement authorities believe a person may be in danger.
Rep. Yoder commented briefly about the importance to protect the country from “lone wolf” terrorists such as Omar Mateen who shot and killed 49 persons Sunday, June 12, at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla.
There is a continuing debate in Congress about gun control, usually along partisan lines. Democrats argue for stricter gun control laws, particularly when it comes to background checks. Many Republicans argue for gun rights, citing the protection assured in the Second Amendment.
Rep. Yoder said that there are some 800,000 persons on the federal government’s terrorist watch list. The FBI is restricted, based on a person’s civil rights, as to what it can ask and do. The government also maintains a “no-fly” list. Some have argued that people on these lists should not be able to buy guns.
In Mateen’s case, according to an article in Wired.Com, investigators surveilled him and arranged a meeting with a confidential informant. Apparently it was determined that Mateen was not a danger. Lawmakers want to determine why Mateen was taken off the watch list.
Rep. Yoder said it will be important to look at any proposed legislation in this area very carefully.
Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is the executive director of Business West.
