Checkpoint Denver Update - The RMN weighs in

Good editorial this morning from the Rocky Mountain News on Deborah Davis and the federal case pending against her for her refusal to "show papers" (ID) to a federal cop, even though she was only riding a public bus that happened to be going through a large area known as the Denver Federal Center.

We've never been keen on the idea of government officials demanding an ID from citizens going about their normal business. It reminds us of scenes from those old movies of World War II in which the hero, who has slipped onto a train in occupied Europe, finds himself confronted by some grim-faced official demanding to see his "papers."

Papers? Americans rightly bridle at the demand - unless of course the official is investigating a crime. That's why our sympathies go out to Deborah Davis of Arvada, who refused to show an ID at the Federal Center in Lakewood and who may be prosecuted as a result.

Here's our favorite paragraph:

Here's hoping the threat dissolves once those attorneys put their heads together. They might recall that Americans are under no obligation to carry an ID - at least not when heading to work by foot, bike or bus. Most do, of course, and the vast majority probably wouldn't mind flashing it at an officer engaged in routine security for a federal complex. But why should iconoclasts such as Davis be punished for defending our liberty just because the rest of us are trouble-averse sheep?

Amen to that.

True conservatives should be on the side of Ms. Davis. Conservatives believe in the rule of law but only so far as it complies with the basic constitutional rights of all citizens. We also believe in limited government -- although these days it's hard to tell the two major political parties apart on this issue when you look at the growth of government and spending -- and government needs to acknowledge that it knows where the limits begin and end.National security at the expense of liberty is too high a price to pay.

Someone somewhere needs to give the order to back off Deb Davis and remind certain people that this is still America.

Previous Posts on this Subject:

Checkpoint Denver: One woman's story

Denver's Deb Davis drama develops