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Saturday, April 22, 2006
DOJ approves revised Georgia voter ID law
Alexis Unkovic at 11:12 AM ET

[JURIST] The US Department of Justice [official website] signed off on a new Georgia law [PDF text; bill summary] Friday that will require voters to present a valid photo ID when they vote in elections. Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue [official website] initially approved the bill in January after its passage [JURIST report] by the Georgia state legislature [official website], but under the federal Voting Rights Act [DOJ backgrounder], states with a past history of discrimination must have federal approval before making changes to their election laws.

Civil rights, religious and community groups asked the DOJ to block implementation of the law [JURIST report] last month, arguing that it disproportionately discriminates against the poor, elderly, and minorities, who may have trouble securing the proper identification. The revised version of the law offers free photo Ids to voters who need them, after a federal judge blocked [JURIST report] a previous version of the Georgia law last year.

AP has more.

Saturday, April 22, 2006
DOJ approves revised Georgia voter ID law
Alexis Unkovic at 11:12 AM ET

[JURIST] The US Department of Justice [official website] signed off on a new Georgia law [PDF text; bill summary] Friday that will require voters to present a valid photo ID when they vote in elections. Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue [official website] initially approved the bill in January after its passage [JURIST report] by the Georgia state legislature [official website], but under the federal Voting Rights Act [DOJ backgrounder], states with a past history of discrimination must have federal approval before making changes to their election laws.

Civil rights, religious and community groups asked the DOJ to block implementation of the law [JURIST report] last month, arguing that it disproportionately discriminates against the poor, elderly, and minorities, who may have trouble securing the proper identification. The revised version of the law offers free photo Ids to voters who need them, after a federal judge blocked [JURIST report] a previous version of the Georgia law last year.

AP has more.

Friday, April 21, 2006
Gonzales pushes data retention to help child pornography investigations
Jeannie Shawl at 8:32 AM ET

[JURIST] US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [official profile] said Thursday that the failure of Internet service providers to retain user records has impeded US Justice Department investigations into child pornography and said that the department is looking into setting "reasonable" data retention standards. In a speech [text] at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Gonzales said:

The investigation and prosecution of child predators depends critically on the availability of evidence that is often in the hands of Internet service providers. This evidence will be available for us to use only if the providers retain the records for a reasonable amount of time. Unfortunately, the failure of some Internet service providers to keep records has hampered our ability to conduct investigations in this area.

As a result, I have asked the appropriate experts at the Department to examine this issue and provide me with proposed recommendations. And I am going to reach out personally to the CEOs of the leading service providers and to other industry leaders to solicit their input and assistance.

Record retention by Internet service providers consistent with the legitimate privacy rights of Americans, is an issue that must be addressed.

Under the Electronic Communication Transactional Records Act [text], ISPs are only required to keep records for 90 days if requested by the government to do so. Members of Congress, including Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY) [official website] have also said they would support legislation mandating data retention [CNET report].

Earlier this year, the European Union approved [JURIST report] a controversial directive [PDF text] which requires EU member states to adopt measures to provide for the retention of citizens' phone call and Internet service data for a period of between six to 24 months. The EU measure, though intended in part to crackdown on pedophiles, is largely designed to track down terrorists and criminal gangs.

CNET News has more.

Friday, April 21, 2006
Gonzales pushes data retention to help child pornography investigations
Jeannie Shawl at 8:32 AM ET

[JURIST] US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [official profile] said Thursday that the failure of Internet service providers to retain user records has impeded US Justice Department investigations into child pornography and said that the department is looking into setting "reasonable" data retention standards. In a speech [text] at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Gonzales said:

The investigation and prosecution of child predators depends critically on the availability of evidence that is often in the hands of Internet service providers. This evidence will be available for us to use only if the providers retain the records for a reasonable amount of time. Unfortunately, the failure of some Internet service providers to keep records has hampered our ability to conduct investigations in this area.

As a result, I have asked the appropriate experts at the Department to examine this issue and provide me with proposed recommendations. And I am going to reach out personally to the CEOs of the leading service providers and to other industry leaders to solicit their input and assistance.

Record retention by Internet service providers consistent with the legitimate privacy rights of Americans, is an issue that must be addressed.

Under the Electronic Communication Transactional Records Act [text], ISPs are only required to keep records for 90 days if requested by the government to do so. Members of Congress, including Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY) [official website] have also said they would support legislation mandating data retention [CNET report].

Earlier this year, the European Union approved [JURIST report] a controversial directive [PDF text] which requires EU member states to adopt measures to provide for the retention of citizens' phone call and Internet service data for a period of between six to 24 months. The EU measure, though intended in part to crackdown on pedophiles, is largely designed to track down terrorists and criminal gangs.

CNET News has more.