Quote(s) of note:

The new data showed that the Justice Department used the secret warrants 108 times from April 2003 to January 2005, for an average of almost five warrants per month. That represented a sharp increase from the last reported tally from October 2001 to April 2003, when 47 warrants were issued, for an average of fewer than three per month.

The secret warrants were used in a wide spectrum of cases beyond terrorism, including child pornography, drug trafficking and organized crime, the officials said.

In explaining the increased frequency, a Justice Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of political considerations said, "It's the criminals who set the pace for how often these warrants are used, not us."

It is, however, "us" that decides to use the law outside the conditions the law was written to address.

Anyway...

Justice Dept. Defends Patriot Act Before Senate Hearings
By ERIC LICHTBLAU

WASHINGTON, April 4 - On the eve of Senate hearings on the government's power to fight terrorism, the Justice Department on Monday defended the law passed after the Sept. 11 attacks as "an invaluable tool" and released new data showing increased use of a particularly controversial type of search warrant.

But critics of the law, the USA Patriot Act, strongly urged Congress to give it careful scrutiny before extending the government's powers to track terrorism suspects. Several critical provisions in the law are set to expire at the end of the year, and on Tuesday the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold the first in a series of Congressional hearings on the question of whether to extend the law.

In advance of the hearing, Justice Department officials sought to strengthen support for the law in the face of criticism from some conservatives and many liberals who say it gives the government too much power to track suspects and use wiretaps.

The data released by the Justice Department late Monday centered on its use of Section 213 of the law, which allows federal agents, with a court order, to enter a suspect's home or residence secretly and search for evidence without immediately telling the person they have been there. The provision is among those set to expire at the end of 2005.

The new data showed that the Justice Department used the secret warrants 108 times from April 2003 to January 2005, for an average of almost five warrants per month. That represented a sharp increase from the last reported tally from October 2001 to April 2003, when 47 warrants were issued, for an average of fewer than three per month.

Justice Department officials said they resorted to using the secret warrants in less than 0.2 percent of all search warrants granted to law enforcement officials. The secret warrants were used in a wide spectrum of cases beyond terrorism, including child pornography, drug trafficking and organized crime, the officials said.

In explaining the increased frequency, a Justice Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of political considerations said, "It's the criminals who set the pace for how often these warrants are used, not us."