June 10, 2004
Former Libertarian candidate raided by Joint Terrorism Task Force
A large number of federal agents in Denver, Colorado raided the home and business of outspoken tax opponent, 2nd Amendment activist and former Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senate Rick Stanley. Stanley has pushed the limits of legal boundaries many times — wearing holstered firearms to rallies (wearing firearms is legal, but rallies are expressly prohibited) and challenging the constitutionality of the federal income tax — and this does not mark the first time he has been jailed or charged.
But it does set a different precedent, it is the first time that a constitutional activist has been raided by a bevy of agents from the Joint Terrorism Task Force, and may be charged under provisions of the notorious USA PATRIOT Act.
Rocky Mountain News has part of the story in "Feds raid home of tax foe":
Federal officials were tight-lipped about the raid."A court-ordered search warrant was executed as part of a criminal investigation being conducted by the FBI and the IRS and other members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force," said Jeff Dorschner, spokesman for the Colorado U.S. attorney's office.
[...]
He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2002 as a Libertarian candidate.
During the campaign he contended that the incumbent and ultimate victor in that race, Republican Wayne Allard, should be tried for treason - and hanged if convicted - for voting for the federal Patriot Act after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
That statement and some of Stanley's actions alarmed some Libertarian Party members, and the party censured Stanley.
Ironically, Stanley -- a man bent on restoring the Constitution to it's former prestige -- seems to be falling under the same sword that is supposed to be reserved for capturing terrorists who are bent on usurping it.
You can also check out a phone interview with Stanley by a little-known website called WingTV.net that took place right after the raid. A note of caution though, WingTV is about as government conspiracy theorist as it gets, so take it with a grain of salt.
Feds raid home of tax foe [Rocky Mountain News]
Rick Stanley interview [WingTV.net]
Oh, and hi everyone. I’m back :)
Posted by: Stephen VanDyke at June 10, 2004 03:43 PMWelcome back, Stephen. Looking forward to another Independent voice at WatchBlog.
Posted by: David R. Remer at June 10, 2004 04:47 PMStephen, the following from the link is disturbing:
“Federal agents raided the Denver home and business of income tax opponent and gun rights advocate Rick Stanley on Wednesday, seizing materials said to be related to taxes and possible anti-government activity.
No federal charges have been filed against Stanley, and court documents relating to the raid remained sealed Wednesday.”
What does “possible anti-government activity” refer to? Hey, if he didn’t pay his taxes and the warrant was for tax evasion, fine, that is legal and in accordance with the laws the majority of Americans are comfortable with. But, possible anti-government activity, is a chilling phrase. I am opposed to a lot of what our government does in the name of greedy and power hungry politicians who put themselves before the people, and parties who put their agendas before the people’s, and a whole host of government programs like the current version of Medicare, aspects of military development, and the tax structure as a whole.
Does that constitute a threat to the laws of the land and the safety and welfare of the commonwealth? Hell, I hope not, or we as a nation are in very big trouble, here.
And why in the hell are the documents related to the raid, under seal? Why would the government withhold its justification for violating the privacy of a fellow citizen’s home and business? This has a pale shade of Gestapo tactics I think. This Patriot Act has simply got to be modified - a government and its police which are allowed to function under the cloak of secrecy is not, by my definition, a democratic government.
Posted by: David R Remer at June 11, 2004 01:38 AMHey Stephen, how good is that source? I’ve looked around for the last couple days, and the only reference I’ve seen is the one you list. How come no one else has picked up the story?
Actually, I was looking to do a follow-up and this new story came across the wire just 6 hours ago.
Looks like it’s still a local story though, but this guy is definitely not backing down and it could turn out to be a really interesting case.
Posted by: Stephen VanDyke at June 12, 2004 09:34 AMI have been waiting for this kind of thing to happen. All we need now is for Stanley to be declared an enemy combatant.
If bush gets reelected I get the feeling our only choices are going to be form a resistance, group or move to Canada.
I am to old and fat to be a resistance fighter and Canada gets damn cold in the winter.
Let me get this straight: this guy threatens to hang his political opponent for “treason” and yet when he’s arrested, he’s suddenly a martyr for civil liberties?
“Tax Protest” movements have a long and “rich” history. Check out Gordon Kahl:
http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/orgs/american/adl/paranoia-as-patriotism/gordon-kahl.html
Here’s a hint to the “Tax Protest” movement: if you bring guns to the party, that’s no longer “speech”.
Bob Young, yeah, but 97% of Canadians wouldn’t trade their medical system for America’s. Canada has a lot going for it despite their cold and long winters.
Posted by: David R. Remer at June 16, 2004 06:29 AM
