The E-Sylum:  Volume 9, Number 26, June 25, 2006, Article 25

SECRET SERVICE SIEZES "MILLION DOLLAR GOSPEL TRACTS"

According to an article posted June 22 on the WorldNetDaily.com
web site, "A federal judge in Dallas yesterday ruled against a
Christian group whose "million-dollar" gospel tracts were seized
by the U.S. Secret Service as "counterfeit money," and a
wheelchair-bound man in Las Vegas claims a Secret Service agent
threatened him with arrest for passing out the same tracts.

Brian Fahling of the American Family Association Center for Law
and Policy, which is representing the Denton, Texas-based Great
News Network, had asked the judge to order immediately the return
of 8,300 tracts seized by the Secret Service and to prevent the
government agency's local field office from arresting anyone who
distributes them.

Fahling told WorldNetDaily he's unsure at this point what the
judge's negative decision will mean for the Christian evangelists
who have been using the tracts, which mimic U.S. currency but
have disclaimers along with a gospel message on the back."

"The Secret Service insists the tract violates a federal law that
says reproductions of currency cannot be regulation size and cannot
be two-sided.

Fahling contends the sections of the U.S. code's title 18 cited
by the government, 475 and 504, don't apply.

He argues 475 deals only with authorized denominations – there
is no $1 million bill – and 504 pertains only to exact copies of
currency. The tracts have numerous differences, including the
gospel message on the back, he points out.

The judge in Dallas yesterday, Jorge A. Solis, indicated the
tract is not sufficiently distinct from actual currency."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story

  Wayne Homren, Editor

	coinbooks.org Web

The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization 
promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor 
at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com

To subscribe go to: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum