BOOKSTORE DOESN'T HAVE TO REVEAL ITS RECORDS

Buyers' Privacy More Important than Search

DENVER -- Ruling in favor of the privacy of readers, Colorado's highest
court Monday said police could not force a Denver bookstore to reveal the
name of a customer who bought a how-to book on making illegal drugs.

The case against the Tattered Cover bookstore was closely watched by
police, -- who said they needed the information to fight illegal drugs, --
and by civil libertarians, who said forcing the bookstore to reveal the
customer's identity could make readers afraid to buy controversial books.

In its 51-page order, the court repeatedly said fears that police could
find out what people were reading would send a chilling message.

The case stemmed from a March 2000 raid on a suspected methamphetamine lab
in a trailer home in suburban Denver. The police found the drug lab as well
as handguns and two books, "The Construction and Operation of Clandestine
Drug Laboratories" and "Advanced Techniques of Clandestine Psychedelic
Manufacture."

They also found an envelope from the Tattered Cover, one of the country's
premier independent bookstores. Police approached owner Joyce Meskis with a
search warrant for the store's records, aiming to link the book purchases
to the suspect's name on the mailing label.

Meskis fought the warrant and won a temporary injunction preventing police
from seizing the records.

"Had it not been for the Tattered Cover's steadfast stance, the zealousness
of the city would have led to the disclosure of information that we
ultimately conclude is constitutionally protected," the Colorado Supreme
Court said.