Anti-Terror Powers Used Against Non-Terrorists

The Justice Department has used many of the anti-terrorism powers granted in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to pursue defendants for crimes unrelated to terrorism, including drug violations, credit card fraud and bank theft, according to a government accounting released yesterday.

In a 60-page report to the House Judiciary Committee, Justice officials also confirmed for the first time that nearly 50 defendants were secretly detained as material witnesses in connection with the investigation of the Sept. 11 attacks. The government has not previously characterized how many defendants had been held.

Tim Edgar, legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, said the report confirms fears that Justice and the FBI would abuse some of their new powers. "Many of these terrorism powers were actually being asked for as a way of increasing the government's authority in other areas," Edgar said.

The previously obscure material-witness statute, which allows prosecutors to hold potential grand jury witnesses, has emerged as a centerpiece of the federal government's anti-terrorism strategy. The Washington Post reported in November that at least 44 witnesses had been detained under the statute, but nearly half had not been called to testify before grand juries. Some also complained of erratic contact with attorneys.