result #75485 - IN THIS SCENARIO WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT: PRIVACY OR PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERNS?

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result #75485 - IN THIS SCENARIO WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT: PRIVACY OR PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERNS?

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political : IN THIS SCENARIO WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT: PRIVACY OR PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERNS?

[+] serious ballot by herzog
created Sat Jun 18, 05

MESA - Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio wants to have his air posse search for filthy pools to combat the spread of the West Nile virus.

But the County Attorney's Office says randomly peering into someone's back yard without prior indication that there is a mosquito problem raises concerns about privacy rights.

"We hope the posse members conducting surveillance will be sensitive to the privacy issue," said Barrett Lotstein, special assistant county attorney. "Peeping on them from the sky might be disconcerting to some."

Arpaio, who launched the operation Thursday, said he wants to take a proactive approach to the deadly virus before the season begins.

Once green pools are spotted from the air, ground patrol posse members will identify the residences and forward the information to the county's environmental services department.

If the pool violates the county health code, the homeowner can face a misdemeanor charge, which carries up to a $500 fine or 30 days in jail.

Sheriff's spokesman Jack MacIntyre said Arpaio does not need permission from the County Attorney's Office to protect the health interests of county residents.

"Our personnel is perfectly capable of balancing the privacy interests of individuals with the serious threat to public health that exists with the threat of a West Nile virus outbreak," MacIntyre said. "The county attorney's office concedes that nothing in this plan is illegal."

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They want to use helicopters to look into pools that may be mosquitoe havens to help slow the spread of a particularly unpleasant disease. And while I see why this could be a civil rights issue, I think in this case public health should take priority. It is a minimal interference and could save a lot of lives, assuming it is used only for the purpose described and not to spy on people.

What do you think? Should a right to privacy outweigh everything else? Or is this a worthwhile enterprise to combat disease?

Public health is more important	5
This is a good idea, but it could be a slippery slope, should be carefully monitored	2
Privacy is more important	0

Ballot #75485: has 7 total votes.
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COMMENTS:
Public health is more important, IMO.

After all, people with pools are required by law to enclose them to prevent drownings. This doesn't seem so different.

I think they should be notified, told to clean up their pool within, say, 72 hours, then face charges if they fail to do so.

by mojo on Sat Jun 18, 05 1:58pm [+]

I think there always needs to be a careful examination of the facts and the risks of violating privacy issues. So, caution is always advised. This situation though, seems pretty clear cut. Interesting ballot, herzog.

by FiddleFaddleOnLSD on Sat Jun 18, 05 2:35pm [+]

I see this as a privacy issue ONLY if someone's doing something in their backyard that they really SHOULDN'T be doing. My motto is, "If you have nothing to hide, open the door."

by Truthseeker013 on Sat Jun 18, 05 4:03pm [+]

I am leaning towards the public health on this issue. I don't think that there is a constitutional right to privacy. My belief is that that was created out of whole cloth.

I think other information would be helpful like, can police use helicopters to find pot?

I think though that it is probably a waste of resources. There seems that there would be a more cost effective way to do this. And what if as a result someone is found to be storing gasoline a little improperly for example.

Now that I have thought about it I think it is a bad idea.

by xxxxxxxx on Sat Jun 18, 05 5:30pm [+]

Hadn't even thought of the waste of resources. As inter_regnum says, perhaps it's a bad idea.

by mojo on Sat Jun 18, 05 6:11pm [+]

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