The system will allow state and local police to check 12 databases maintained by federal agencies, and provide officers with a direct line to federal agents to report suspicious activities. If a police officer has reason to believe a person might be involved in terror-related activities, state officials with security clearance will share data with their counterparts at federal agencies in Washington. The procedure is designed to keep sensitive information from becoming public.

The New York State Defender's Association also objects to the policy:

Jonathan Gradess, executive director of the New York State Defenders Association, said he is worried the flow of information will add unsubstantiated reports to federal databases. "The major flaw in the program rests on its major purpose," Gradess said. "Its major purpose is to put every scrap of information into the system on the assumption that it may somehow be relevant."

...Gradess questioned whether a police officer stopping a person with an Arab-sounding name for a traffic violation would not automatically try to run the name through the federal databases. "Nobody wants to make a mistake, so there is sort of permission to err on the side of overkill," he said.