Government Prepares to Investigate Thousands

The Michigan ACLU announced today that pamphlets advising people about their rights when stopped or questioned by the FBI, police or INS officials are available in English, Spanish and Arabic.

"Know Your Rights: What to Do If You're Stopped by the Police, the FBI, the INS or the Customs Service" contains information for citizens and non-citizens alike and is intended for those who feel at risk of becoming innocent targets of a government investigation in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

“There has been great concern that many people don’t really know what their rights are,” said Kary Moss, Michigan ACLU executive director. “Having this information will be even more important after the Justice Department’s announcement that thousands of young men from Middle Eastern countries will be questioned by the FBI, simply because of where they are from and not based on suspicion.”

These brochures answer the vast majority of questions that have been raised about stops, questioning, searches, and rights of non-citizens. None of the advice is meant to stop people from cooperating with proper law enforcement investigations. Advice to those who are being questioned by authorities is to be careful, but truthful in responding to law enforcement.

The brochures are available at no cost to ethnic organizations and community groups at the Michigan ACLU office or can be downloaded in Adobe Acrobat/PDF format from the ACLU of MI website www.aclumich.org

To learn more about your rights, visit: http://www.aclu.org/national-security/know-your-rights-when-encountering....