An Overview of the USA Patriot Act, its impact on local law enforcement, and the potential for net widening - Research Paper Example

The patriot act aimed to address this by effecting drastic changes in its intelligence agencies. This enables them to work more efficiently by removing the barrier that impeded their work. The act also aimed to seal the loopholes that terrorist were using to their advantage making Americans vulnerable to terrorist attacks. The act reduced the restrictions that the agencies enforcing the law were facing during their endeavor of intelligence gathering in the country. The act also went further and increased the mandate of the treasury by giving the secretary in the department authority to control financial exchanges, and transactions in order to choke out the supply of funding for terrorist activities in the country (Scheppler, 2006).

They especially emphasized on the transactions that foreigners made that were suspicious or had terrorist links. In addition, the immigration department was given the go ahead to deport or detain individuals who are suspected of being terrorist or are aiding terrorist acts through their actions. The act also delved into domestic terrorism by expanding the definition of the act in order to seal the loopholes that terrorist might exploit. Through this act, the intelligence agencies and law enforcers were unshackled from restrictions that would have impeded their fight against terrorism.

The current administration has extended the mandate of the act in order to guarantee that the security of the US is safeguarded. The act has had a significant impact on law enforcement in that the agencies have been empowered to be able to carry out their duties efficiently, without coming into conflict with the law, or encroaching into the rights of individuals. The act has also widened the net of the intelligence communities to be able to thwart acts of terror on the US population. The act came about when the American government was pushed to act after a devastating terrorist attack