Yes. Between 2003 and 2006, nearly two hundred thousand National Security Letters were issued to obtain personal/financial history of US citizens without any judicial review. This data was only used for one terrorism related conviction, and it is generally considered that this conviction would have happend even without the act.
Why would you expect NSL’s to be used in criminal convictions? What does that have to do with national security?
Isn’t the whole point of an NSL to get something for legitimate national security purposes that couldn’t be legitimately acquired for criminal prosecution?
Well, yeah. The security of Britain's colonies as a wee bit threatened by the War of Independence. The crown very much considered it a crime. But was it wrong?
