The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“FEDERAL RULE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE 41” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S6833-S6835 on Dec. 7, 2016.
The Department is one of the oldest in the US, focused primarily on law enforcement and the federal prison system. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, detailed wasteful expenses such as $16 muffins at conferences and board meetings.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
FEDERAL RULE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE 41
Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following letters from law enforcement groups be printed in the Record in support of the recent changes to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41 that was the subject of debate on the floor of the Senate on November 30, 2016: a December 6, 2016, letter signed by the Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the National District Attorneys Association, the National Sheriffs' Association, and the Sergeant's Benevolent Association NYPD; a December 5, 2016, letter signed by the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association; a December 5, 2016, letter signed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Agents Association; a December 5, 2016, letter signed by the National Fraternal Order of Police; and, a December 5, 2016, letter signed by the National Association to Protect Children.
December 6, 2016.Re: Rule 41 Changes.
Hon. Chuck Grassley,ChairmanHon. Patrick Leahy,Ranking Member, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Senate
Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Grassley and Ranking Member Leahy: We write in support of changes to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure that improve the ability of law enforcement to obtain evidence despite efforts by criminals to hide behind technology. The changes encourage judicial oversight of complex online investigations and give investigators a clear roadmap to seek authorization for their techniques.
Rule 41 improvements help solve a simple conundrum for law enforcement: if you don't know where a computer is located that is being used to commit a crime, how do you know which court to ask for a search warrant to find the computer? Investigators sought these common-sense changes because they needed court oversight and authorization to identify criminals hiding behind technological barriers, not because they wanted to avoid oversight.
Rule 41 only governs cases where investigators are seeking a search warrant issued by a neutral magistrate based upon probable cause, particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. If these changes are not made, then criminals could hide behind anonymizing services with impunity, knowing that law enforcement could never lawfully figure out which court had jurisdiction over them.
The stated goal of several legislative reforms addressing law enforcement access to digital evidence is to modernize the law to accommodate changing technology, preserving law enforcement access while protecting privacy. Ensuring that law enforcement can access evidence it needs with appropriate judicial oversight is precisely what these Rule 41 changes will do.
Sincerely,Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies,International Association of Chiefs of Police,Major Cities Chiefs Association,Major County Sheriffs' Association,National Association of Police Organizations,National District Attorneys Association National Sheriffs' Association,National Sheriffs' Association,Sergeant's Benevolent Association NYPD.
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Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association,
Washington, DC, December 5, 2016.Re: Rule 41 Amendments.
Hon. Mitch McConnell,Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, U.S. Capitol, Washington, DC,Hon. Charles E. Grassley,Chairman, Senate Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.Hon. Harry Reid,Minority Leader, U.S. Senate,Washington, DC.Hon. Patrick J. Leahy,Ranking Member, Senate Committee on the Judiciary, U.S.
Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Senators: On behalf of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA)--the nation's largest professional, non-profit association representing over 26,000 federal law enforcement officers from 65 agencies--I am writing to express our strong support for the recently implemented amendments to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. These amendments will enhance and improve the ability for law enforcement officials to investigate and prosecute terrorists, transnational child pornographers, and cyber criminals who use computer networks to conceal their physical location.
FLEOA shares the same opinion of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Agent's Association (FBIAA), the National Association of Assistant United States Attorneys (NAAUSA) and the National Association to Protect Children. We all agree that the Rule 41 amendments are necessary to address investigative hindrances that result from the difficulty of identifying the exact location of a computer when seeking a warrant. Terrorists and criminals frequently use complex computer networks, spread across the country and the world to anonymize communications, but the previous version of Rule 41 only allowed magistrate judges to issue warrants for evidence within their jurisdictions. This situation created ambiguity and significant burdens for investigators allowing transnational sexual predators and cyber criminals anonymity.
The Rule 41 amendments resolve the uncertainty surrounding the warrant process by establishing a court-supervised framework for conducting investigations that will protect the privacy interests of the public. FLEOA believes these changes, which took effect on December 1, 2016 are reasonable and necessary.
Respectively,
Nathan Catura,FLEOA National President.
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Federal Bureau of Investigation
Agents Association,
Alexandria, VA, December 5, 2016.Re: Rule 41 Amendments.
Hon. Mitch McConnell,Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.Hon. Charles E. Grassley,Chairman, Senate Committee on the Judiciary,U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.Hon. Harry Reid,Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.Hon. Patrick J. Leahy,Ranking Member, Senate Committee on the Judiciary,U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Senators: On behalf of the FBI Agents Association
(``FBIAA''), a voluntary professional association currently representing over 13,000 active duty and retired FBI Special Agents, I write to express our support for the recently implemented amendments to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (``Rule 41''). These amendments will enhance the ability for law enforcement officials to investigate and prosecute criminals, such as terrorists and child pornographers, who use computer networks to disguise their physical location.
The FBIAA shares the opinion of FBI Director Comey and the Department of Justice that the narrow changes included in the Rule 41 amendments are necessary to address investigative obstacles that result from the difficulty of identifying the specific location of a computer when seeking a warrant. Criminals frequently use complex computer networks spread across the country and the world to anonymize their communications, but the previous version of Rule 41 only allowed magistrate judges to issue warrants for evidence within their jurisdictions. This situation created uncertainty and significant administrative burdens for investigators, and as Director Comey noted earlier this year, the previous iteration of Rule 41 created problems ``for some of our most important investigations.''
The Rule 41 amendments resolve the uncertainty surrounding the warrant process by establishing a court-supervised framework for conducting investigations that will protect the privacy interests of the public. The FBIAA believes these changes, which took effect on December 1, 2016, are reasonable and necessary.
The FBIAA is pleased that the Senate did not interfere with the implementation of the Rule 41 amendments, and we look forward to continuing our work with Congress on these important issues.
If you have any questions, please contact me, FBIAA General Counsel Dee Martin, [email protected], and Joshua Zive, [email protected]
Sincerely,
Thomas O'Connor,President.
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National Fraternal
Order of Police,
Washington, DC, December 5, 2016.Hon. Charles E. Grassley,Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.Hon. Patrick J. Leahy,Ranking Member, Committee on the Judiciary,U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman and Senator Leahy, I am writing on behalf of the members of the Fraternal Order of Police to advise you of our strong and continued support for the changes to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure made by the U.S. Department of Justice.
The FOP supports these changes and we believe they will benefit law enforcement officers conducting online investigations. These changes will ensure that Federal agents know which judge to go to in order to apply for a warrant when the cybercriminals they are investigating have hidden their location through anonymizing technology. This search warrant will help law enforcement discover where these criminals are located and end their illicit activity.
Law enforcement officers are now able to obtain warrants from a single judge instead of multiple applications in many jurisdictions to obtain the same information. This will help speed up investigations into crimes like computer hacking, where offenders unlawfully access computers remotely and cross jurisdictional boundaries.
On behalf of the more than 330,000 members of the Fraternal Order of Police, I want to thank you for your consistent strong support for the men and women of law enforcement throughout this country. I look forward to working with you and your staff on this issue. If I can be of any additional help in this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me or Executive Director Jim Pasco in my Washington office.
Sincerely,
Chuck Canterbury,National President.
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National Association to
Protect Children,
Knoxville, TN, December 5, 2016.Hon. John Cornyn:U.S. Senate, Majority Whip, Chair, Judiciary Subcommittee on
The Constitution, Washington, DC.
Dear Senator Cornyn, We are writing you in support of the amendment to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 41. It has been with great concern over the last decade that we have watched as child sexual predators take advantage of new technologies, including ways to hide their exploitation of children through the use of proxies, anonymizers and encryption.
The internet was not created to give technologically savvy offenders an advantage in obfuscating their crimes, and offenders who participate in the global demand for the rape and torture of children should not be rewarded for being good at hiding.
Make no mistake, the offenders who take advantage of the
``dark web'' are some of the most dangerous offenders that exist. For proof of this one need look no further than one of the most notorious ICE cases in history, the recent
``Operation Delego''. This transnational child exploitation case involved between 600-900 of the worst offenders ICE has seen. It led to 72 indictments (of which 15 are for ``John Doe'' warrants) and 57 arrests. This investigation uncovered a private bulletin board where hands on offenders produced hardcore child rape imagery and shared it by utilizing sophisticated proxies and encryption methods. The members were segregated into groups, including a ``Super VIP'' section and according to the ``Hawkeye Indictment'' provided by the US Department of Justice, ``The rules controlling what could be posted in that section were as follows:
``Keep the girls under 13, in fact, I really need to see 12 or younger to know your (sic) a brother''.
and:
``It's very young kids, getting (expletive), and preteens in distress and or crying, etc. . . Getting hit hard on the ass, with a belt and so on . . . I can't believe some of you guys can't work it out for yourselves? And ``pretend'' bondage, ``pretend light whipping'' is not super hardcore. If the girl looks total (sic) comfortable, she's not in distress, it does NOT belong I (sic) this section (smiley face icon)''.
In another transnational child exploitation case investigated by ICE dubbed ``Operation Round Table'', Jonathon Johnson, a 27 year old predator from Louisiana, operated a 27,000 member hidden service site on TOR for the production and dissemination of child sexual abuse images. Johnson created a ``honeypot'' site by stealing a young woman's identity and pretending to be her. Not only did he persuade over 251 child victims to provide him with sexually explicit images and video but he was successful in convincing some of his victims to sexually assault their younger relatives on camera for him, some of whom were under the age of 3.
We applaud Congress and the US Supreme Court for providing this amendment to rule 41, which can only be described as long overdue.
The internet has provided vexing challenges to today's law enforcement efforts to protect children and for their sake government must keep pace.
With much gratitude,Camille Cooper,
Director, Government Affairs, The National Association to PROTECT Children & PROTECT.
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