Pubdate: Tue, 09 Apr 2002
Source: Irish Examiner (Ireland)
Copyright: Examiner Publications Ltd, 2002
Contact:  http://www.examiner.ie/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/144

TATTERED COVER REMAINS CLOSED IN US DRUG CASE

IN a case closely watched by police and civil libertarians, Colorado's 
highest court ruled yesterday that The Tattered Cover Bookstore did not 
have to give police the name of a customer who bought a "how to" book on 
making illegal drugs.

"Because of the strength of other evidence ... and because of the 
substantial chilling effects that are likely to result from execution of 
the warrant, we hold that the city has failed to demonstrate that its need 
for this evidence is sufficiently compelling to outweigh the harmful 
effects of the search warrant," the Colorado Supreme Court said.

The case stemmed from a March 2000 raid on a suspected methamphetamine lab 
in a trailer home in suburban Denver. During a search, police found the 
drug lab as well as handguns and two books, The Construction and Operation 
of Clandestine Drug Laboratories and Advanced Techniques of Clandestine 
Psychedelic Manufacture.

They also found an envelope from The Tattered Cover and approached 
bookstore owner Joyce Meskis with a search warrant for the store's records 
to try and link the book purchases to the suspect's name on the mailing 
label. Meskis fought the warrant and won a temporary injunction. A district 
judge ultimately allowed a limited search of store records.

"Had it not been for the Tattered Cover's steadfast stance, the zealousness 
of the city would have led to the disclosure of information that we 
ultimately conclude is constitutionally protected," the court said in its 
51-page order.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Alex