Part of the Patriot Act ruled unconstitutional

[hot_pastrami]

The eyes begin to open...

A federal judge has declared unconstitutional a portion of the USA Patriot Act that bars giving expert advice or assistance to groups designated foreign terrorist organizations.

The ruling marks the first court decision to declare a part of the post-Sept. 11 anti-terrorism statute unconstitutional, said David Cole, a Georgetown University law professor who argued the case on behalf of the Humanitarian Law Project.

The Patriot Act has many questionable, unnerving, and over-broad facets. Let's hope this is the first of many sections of the hastily-assembled, freedom-eroding Act to be stricken down.