Maine’s Marine Patrol is allowed to put secret surveillance devices inside boats.
According to an article in the Portland Press Herald, the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) wants the Marine Patrol to secretly install electronic surveillance devices on the boats of fishermen suspected of violating state fishing regulations.
Did you catch that, police will secretly spy on anyone suspected of violating fishing regulations!
If this sounds like ‘predictive policing’ give yourself a gold star. Last year, I warned everyone that police would use ‘predictive policing’ as an excuse to spy on and arrest innocent people.
Bill of Rights ignored so police can secretly spy on boaters
Police are secretly installing GPS devices, audio and video equipment on boats.
DHS/Coast Guard spy on every boat
Two years ago, I warned everyone that DHS and the Coast Guard have forced boaters to install a government tracking device which gives DHS their location every 15-20 seconds. The boat-tracking system is called the “National Automatic Identification System” (NAIS).
“The NAIS program exceeds the stated purpose of marine safety and constitutes an ongoing risk to the privacy and civil liberties of mariners across the United States.”
“The NAIS consists of approximately 200 VHF surveillance receiver sites located throughout the coastal continental United States, inland rivers, Alaska, Hawaii and Guam.”
Why does Maine’s Marine Patrol need to secretly install surveillance devices, when DHS already knows EVERY vesselslocation, identity and speed?
Police to put secret surveillance devices on boaters accused of civil infractions
In 2015 DMR Commissioner Patrick Keliher wanted to eliminate telling boaters accused of civil infractions about secret surveillance devices. Keliher said, “one option to address constitutionality concerns would be to continue requiring a warrant from the courts but to eliminate the 24-hour advanced notification for civil violations.”
Where’s the mass media coverage of this blatant attack on our civil rights?
Imagine if you committed a civil infraction while driving your car, such as forgetting to signal when turning. Now imagine the police secretly installing a GPS device, audio and video equipment in your car so they can catch you violating the law in real-time. There’s really no difference other than it’s happening to boaters.
Police justification of ‘secret surveillance’ without a warrant and ‘secret surveillance’ for civil infractions must be stopped.
http://massprivatei.blogspot.com/2017/01/police-are-secrety-installing-gps.html
Hmmmm…Used to be something called…what was that? OH, YEA! The Con…structional….CONSTITUTION!
Something in there about cops just couldn’t spy on you or search you for nuthin’…somethin’ like that, right?
I expect that they’re going to put surveillance devices anywhere they can squeeze them in, and a judge will always allow it.
This will continue until the heads start rolling.
These vessels and the owners should do regular sweeps of their crafts with detection equipment
Than once a device is found , place the device on or inside one of the establishments vessels or the US Coast guards boats
At a minimum destroy the device every time they are located until the cost over runs the budget
Maine’s Marine Patrol claims it follows 100 years of tradition by spying on boaters…
“Marine Patrol Officers are instilled with the same philosophy that guided the wardens 100 years ago, which is to be impartial and to work in close cooperation with fishermen.” (http://www.maine.gov/dmr/marine-patrol/)
What fisherman would want to be secretly spied on?