-->In der Not ist der"Terror" überall...

CORRUPTION INVESTIGATION: LV FBI used anti-terrorism law
Defense attorney, ACLU say inquiry outside the purview of USA Patriot Act

By J.M. KALIL
REVIEW-JOURNAL

The FBI used the USA Patriot Act to obtain financial information about key figures in its ongoing political corruption probe centered on strip club magnate Michael Galardi, federal authorities confirmed Monday.

Investigators"used a section of the Patriot Act to get subpoenas for financial documents," said Special Agent Jim Stern, a spokesman for the Las Vegas field office of the FBI."It was used appropriately by the FBI and was clearly within the legal parameters of the statute."

One source said two Las Vegas stockbrokers received faxed subpoenas on Oct. 28 asking for records for many of those who have been identified as either a target or subject of the investigation.

That list includes Galardi, the owner of Jaguars and Cheetah's topless clubs; his lobbyist, former Clark County Commissioner Lance Malone; former Commissioner Erin Kenny; County Commission Chairwoman Mary Kincaid-Chauncey; former County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera; and Las Vegas City Councilman Michael McDonald, who was defeated for re-election in June.

A second source confirmed that stockbrokers had been faxed subpoenas asking for information on Galardi, Malone, Kenny, Kincaid-Chauncey, Herrera, McDonald and and at least one of the former politicians' spouses.

The second source said the subpoena appeared to be a search for hidden proceeds that could be used as evidence of bribery in the case.

A source also indicated that records on Las Vegas City Councilman Michael Mack were also sought. Reached Monday, Mack declined to comment on the matter.

The Patriot Act, passed in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, was originally trumpeted by the government as a powerful tool that would assist federal law enforcement officials in combating and preventing terrorism.

But the Bush administration has increasingly attracted criticism from civil libertarians for employing the wide-ranging act to crack down on everything from drug traffickers to child pornographers.

The provision used to obtain the information in the Galardi investigation is Section 314, sources said.

That section allows federal investigators to obtain information from any financial institution regarding the accounts of people suspected of being terrorists or laundering money.

Malone's attorney said it is an outrage that the FBI is using anti-terrorism measures in an effort to gather information on his client.

"The Patriot Act was designed and was sold to the American people as being necessary to combat terrorism. It clearly was not intended for this," Las Vegas attorney Dominic Gentile said."I'm confident that the citizens of the United States are on my side on this one."

Civil libertarians agreed.

"We at the ACLU have said from the beginning that the Patriot Act included provisions that the government sought for years that in no way had anything to do with the threat of terrorism, but could help them in your more garden variety criminal prosecutions," said Gary Peck, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada.