Posted on Sep 18th, 2009

ACLU of Texas Tours Dallas Fusion Center

Organization Sends Letter Expressing Privacy Concerns to Dallas Police

DALLAS – Matt Simpson, Policy Strategist of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas, toured the Dallas Fusion Center this week at the invitation of Dallas Police Department officials.

“The ACLU’s goal is to protect Texans from surveillance abuses that fusion centers in other regions have been known for,” said Simpson. Following the visit, the ACLU of Texas sent a letter to Dallas Police Lt. Todd Thomasson outlining those concerns, especially as it relates to individuals’ privacy. Simpson also met with Deputy Chief Brian Harvey.

The ACLU of Texas looks forward to further meetings to develop guidelines that establish sound privacy protections –- how data is used and then purged, for example.

“We appreciate the willingness of Dallas police to open the intelligence center to us,” said Simpson. “We welcome their invitation to give them input on privacy policies relating to their operations.”

Fusion centers are federally funded and have been in existence across the country for six years and are a repository of data drawn from a variety of sources, including the private sector, with the stated purpose of combating organized crime and terrorism.