Turns out there will likely be two, not three, competing Pittsburgh City Council resolutions regarding the controversial USA PATRIOT Act. (Questioning PATRIOTism, Feb. 19.) One, sponsored by Councilor Bill Peduto, asks Pittsburgh law enforcement not to participate in investigations using the act's enhanced surveillance and search powers. The other, sponsored by Council President Gene Ricciardi, lists objections to new law enforcement powers, but merely pledges to "monitor" the balance between civil liberties and security. That resolution has been passed around -- though not endorsed -- by U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan. A third resolution that Ricciardi forwarded to City Paper, that listed Peduto as a co-sponsor and fell somewhere between the two others, was a draft that has been shelved, the council president's staff said.
