THE PUBLIC SERVANT QUESTIONNAIRE
Key Points:
An American does
not have to speak with a government agent unless the citizen has been
arrested.Americans have a right to privacy, to be left alone.The
PRIVACY ACT OF 1974 (Public Law 93-579), empowers citizens to require
full, written disclosure from a government official who seeks
information.You may
insist on complete disclosure as a precondition to speaking with any
government official.
The
Limits On Federal Power:
Law-abiding citizens are sometimes visited by agents of the Federal
government for no apparent reason. It is helpful, at the time of these
visits, to recall that unless a citizen has been placed under arrest
(either because a law enforcement officer has probable cause to believe
the citizen has committed a crime or because the officer has in his
possession an arrest warrant issued by a judge who believes there is
probable cause the citizen has committed a crime, a citizen does not have
to entertain the company of government agents.Citizens also have the right, guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment
to the United States Constitution, not to testify against themselves.
Thus, when "the government" comes knocking on oneıs door, you have the
right to simply say, "Please go away." Unless the government officer
places you under arrest (there must be probable cause, or an arrest
warrant based on probable cause), the officer must obey your
wishes.
Be Helpful.... On Your
TermsOf
course, citizens also have a vested interest in assisting
"the
government" in its role of crime-solver. Most of us understand the
need to help "the government" to apprehend criminals. But it is also
helpful, when "the government" arrives at your place of employment or at
your home, to know how to find out why government agents have appeared on
YOUR doorstep. A
handy little questionnaire that I came across years ago will do the trick.
Itıs called the "Public Servant Questionnaire." A version
accompanies
this article. The "PSQ" was developed by Lynn Johnston, author of
Who's Afraid of the IRS? (Libertarian Review Foundation: 1983,
ISBN 0-930073-03-7). The
PSQ is based on the requirements placed upon the government by the Privacy
Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-579), an amending law to Title 5, United States
Code, Section 552, and is included as Section 552a. If a
citizen chooses to cooperate with government officials who are seeking
information, BEFORE questioning begins, the citizen should politely inform
the government agent or agents that a prerequisite for the citizen's
cooperation with "the government" is the agentıs cooperation with the
citizen.
Do It Right, The First
Time The
questions should then be put to each agent, and the citizen should enter
the answers onto the questionnaire. Copies should be provided to each
agent, either at the time of the questioning or by mail to the agent after
the visit. The questionnaire informs the government agent that the citizen
knows his rights and knows which limited powers the government agent has
been granted by the people. Most
probably some government agents will not want to fill out or sign the PSQ.
Thatıs fine. They can then be sent on their merry way. They may need to
explain to their superiors, and a court of law, and a jury, on another
day, why they refused to cooperate with the reasonable questions of the
highest officeholder in the land, a citizen.
PUBLIC SERVANT'S QUESTIONNAIRE
Public Law 93-579
states in part: "The purpose of this Act is to provide certain safeguards
for an individual against invasion of personal privacy requiring Federal
agencies... to permit an individual to determine what records pertaining
to him are collected, maintained, used or disseminated by such
agencies...."
The following questions are based upon that act and
are necessary for this individual to make a reasonable determination
concerning divulgence of information to this agency.
1. Name of
public servant ____________________________________________
2.
Residence address
_________________________________________________
City
___________________________________ State _________ Zip
__________
3. Name of department of government, bureau, or agency
by which public servant is employed
__________________________________________
Supervisorıs name
__________________________________________________
4. Office
mailing address:____________________________________________
City
____________________________________ State _________ Zip
_________
5. Will public servant uphold the Constitution of the
United States of America? Yes ______ No _______
6. Did public
servant furnish proof of identity? Yes _____ No _____
7. What was
the nature of proof? ID No. _____________________
Badge No.
_________________ Driverıs License No. ____________
8. Will
public servant furnish a copy of the law or regulation which
authorizes
this investigation? Yes _______ No __________
9. Will the public
servant read aloud that portion of the law authorizing the questions he
will ask? Yes __________ No _________
10. Are the citizen's answers
voluntary? _____ Or Mandatory? ____
11. Are the questions to be
asked based upon a specific law or regulation? ___________ or are they
being used as a discovery process? ________
12. What other uses may
be made of this
information?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
13.
What other agencies may have access to this
information?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
14.
What will be the effect upon me if I should choose to not answer any part
of these
questions?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
15.
Name of person in government requesting that this investigation be made?
__________________________________________
16. Is this
investigation "general?" ______ or is it "special?" ________
Note:
By "general" is meant any kind of blanket investigation in which a number
of persons are involved because of geography, type of business, sex,
religion, race, schooling, income, etc. By "special" is meant any
investigation of an individual nature in which others are not
involved.
17. Have you consulted, questioned, interviewed, or
received information from any third party relative to this
investigation? Yes ______ No _____
18. If yes,
the identity of all such third
parties?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
19.
Do you reasonably anticipate either a civil or criminal action to be
initiated or pursued based upon any of the information which you seek? Yes
________ No ____________
20. Is there a file of records,
information, or correspondence relating to me being maintained by
this agency? Yes ________ No _________
21. Is this agency using any
information pertaining to me which was
supplied by another agency or
government source? Yes _____ No ____
If yes, which agencies and/or
sources? _____________________________
22. Will the public servant
guarantee that the information in these files will not be used by any
other department other than the one by whom he is employed? Yes
___________ No ____________
AFFIRMATION BY PUBLIC SERVANT
I swear (or affirm)
that the answers I have given to the foregoing
questions are complete
and correct in every
particular.
______________________________________________________________________
(Must
be signed in ink. This signature should be witnessed by two people.
Citizen may administer an oath if he or she so desires.)
Witness
____________________________________________________________
Witness
____________________________________________________________
This
questionnaire was written by Daniel J. Schultz. Daniel is a graduate of
the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York and a
practicing attorney in Los Angeles, California. He is the President, and a
co-founding member of ³The Lawyerıs Second Amendment Society (LSAS), a
nationwide network of pro-right to keep and bear arms
attorneys.
Inquiries to the LSAS may be made to 818-734-3066 or by
writing to the LSAS, 18034 Ventura Blvd, No. 329, Encino, CA 91316. The
email address for the LSAS is: LSAS3@aol.com
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