David Davis' Resignation and fight over civil liberty

[James Firth]

Roland Perry wrote:
> <86537DBE-7CDD-4C25-B44E-55EE285F6693@sourcetagged.ian.co.uk>, Ian Mason
> <ukcrypto@sourcetagged.ian.co.uk> writes
> >
> >On 13 Jun 2008, at 14:38, Roland Perry wrote:
> >
> >>  What I struggle to understand is why there needs to be a hard
> >>deadline to "put up or shut up".
> >
> >Why you struggle to understand is that you've never been in this
> >position.
> 
> That's a problem that many people share when discussing public policy in
> a vacuum :(
> 
> >Try to imagine having the whole apparatus of state hanging  over your
> >head. Possibly you can be hauled off to be interrogated at  a moments
> >notice, then possibly detained incommunicado for a long  time. That's a
> >lot of stress and you would, quite naturally, want it  to go away.
> >Moreover, it's precisely that kind of stress that leads  people to make
> >up confessions just to reach a definite ending.
> 
> But I don't really follow that part. If they let you out because some
> 28|42 day dealine expires and they haven't yet unearthed the proof they
> think is lurking there, you aren't in any sense off the hook (unless you
> have a plan to leave the country). Whether you believe yourself to be
> innocent (and unlucky so far) or guilty (but lucky so far) there's still
> the prospect of re-arrest at any time.

Exactly.  Is the "terrorist" situation any more stressful for the
"terrorist" than your average Joe facing an extended investigation of many
months on police bail without formal charge, when their home, work, social
life could be severely disrupted, especially if the charges were
particularly sensitive in nature.

I'm thinking particularly about two cases.  The OiNK file sharing service
raid:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/06/oink_bittorrent_bail_again/
The deadline for charges to be brought has been moved from today, 6 May, to
1 July. It will bring the total length of the probe to more than **eight
months**

Not particularly sensitive but I should imagine a cause of stress and worry
to those under suspicion, and the case of Robert Del Naja, a musician
wrongly accused of viewing child pornography in February 2003.  Although the
charges were dropped a month later, Del Naja was forced to cancel a tour of
New Zealand and later described the pressure not only of awaiting the
outcome of the investigation but also the very public nature of the charges,
which were widely reported, more so than his clearance.  He was also forced
to publically admit to viewing "adult" material in an attempt to clear his
name, causing embarrassment to his family. (The same company used to process
his subscription to legal pornography was also processing illegal
pornography at the time).

Even 28 days can be a long time, especially with your computers impounded
and public suspicion hanging over you.