(857) Sun 20 Apr 97 12:42 By: Rod Swift To: All Re: *FORCED* HIV tests St: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ @EID:d882 22946540 @MSGID: 3:690/660.0 33599ec8 * On 12-04-97 at 15:31, FREDRIC RICE wrote to SUE ALEXANDER, on the topic of "Rodger Hunter" in echo Holysmoke: FR> RH> I'll agree with the first, but killing the carriers FR> rh> HAS to control the disease eventually. FR> Sadly we must count this guy as among the atheists. FR> As David R. said this morning on his Good Ship Gertie, FR> Hunter is able to compartimentalize just as efficiently as FR> any delusional human malfunctioning under the strain of FR> early indoctrination of falsehoods. *sigh*. Seems he's not the only one! :( ============================================ AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION http://www.aclu.org ============================================ News from the ACLU... ============================================ North Dakota Governor Signs Controversial HIV Confinement Bill, Prompting ACLU Inquiry FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, April 10, 1997 BISMARCK, N.D. -- Making North Dakota the first state to confine people suspected of having HIV, Governor Edward Schafer today signed a controversial measure that gives judges the power to detain a person without a hearing, and force that person to take a blood test for HIV. The American Civil Liberties Union, which is considering a legal challenge, said the law serves no public health purpose, and is a serious violation of due process and the Fourth Amendment's guarantee against unreasonable searches and seizures. "This law is way over the top," said Keith D. Elston, executive director of the ACLU of the Dakotas. "It completely violates people's most basic rights, while addressing none of the health concerns raised." Under the measure, a person who believes that another individual has "significantly" exposed them to blood may secure a state court order confining that individual for up to five days, during which time a judge can rule on whether to order a HIV test. The legislation specifies a "person" as a police officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, health care worker or a patient -- in other words, practically anyone could be detained. The law also allows a person to be imprisoned even though no criminal charges have been filed. "This measure gives courts the unprecedented power to jail doctors, patients and ordinary citizens for something as unsubstantiated as a hunch," said Matt Coles, director of the ACLU's National AIDS Project. "Even people accused of the most heinous crimes are jailed only after some official has determined there is probable cause," Coles said. "Then they are entitled to a fair hearing within a couple of days. Surely, the possibility that someone has HIV is not a reason to disregard basic due process." The law also provides no guidance to courts on how the results of the forced HIV test will be kept confidential, raising important questions about individual privacy, according to the ACLU. The controversy stemmed from an incident in Minot, North Dakota where a police officer was exposed to blood during an emergency call. The officer later noticed a scratch on his forearm and requested the subject to be tested for HIV. The subject tested positive, but the officer has not. "The only way that officers and others can know if they haven't been infected is to get tested themselves," Coles said. "While it may satisfy our curiosity to know the other person's HIV status, those results don't tell us anything about our own health." -- 30 -- ============================================ National Office 132 W43 St. NYC 10036 (212) 944-9800 x414 * OLX 2.1 TD * Atheism: A non-prophet organisation --- Maximus 2.02 * Origin: The Perth Omen (3:690/660) SEEN-BY: 12/12 24/888 102/2 943 106/2000 109/7 112/101 114/262 271 124/1 SEEN-BY: 130/1 1008 133/2 143/1 147/34 2021 167/166 170/400 202/777 1207 SEEN-BY: 213/213 218/2 801 890 900 901 907 270/101 275/429 280/1 169 SEEN-BY: 282/1 62 283/120 284/29 300/603 310/666 322/739 323/107 324/278 SEEN-BY: 343/600 346/250 352/3 356/18 371/42 377/86 380/64 382/92 388/1 SEEN-BY: 396/1 2 45 690/660 730/2 732/10 2401/0 2442/0 3603/420 3606/10 SEEN-BY: 3612/41 3615/50 3619/25 3632/21 3651/9 3652/1 3667/1 @PATH: 690/660 396/1 218/907 801