ACLU Challenges Border Deployment

The American Civil Liberties Union has issued a request to the federal government under the Freedom of Information Act for a complete explanation, including relevant documentation, of a decision by the U.S. Northern Command to deploy the Fort Stewart, Ga.-based 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, to support civilian authorities in homeland security activities inside U.S. boundaries. The ACLU says the deployment, which became public in recent media reports, possibly violates the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the armed forces from domestic law enforcement missions except in cases of extreme national emergency. “This is a radical departure from separation of civilian law enforcement and military authority,” said the ACLU’s Mike German. The government typically takes several months to process FOIA requests.