An activist group filed a federal lawsuit today against the Abilene Police Department, claiming the search and seizure of a local activist's computer and files were a violation of privacy.

Mychal Mellen, who works for the Texas State Client Council Abilene Division (TSCCAD),  was arrested in April on suspicion of child pornography after taking his computer in to a shop for repair.

Zena Crenshaw-Logal, the attorney filing the suit, says the department should have anticipated that there would be personal information and the identities of informants on the computer.

"We feel that key government officials should have taken steps to put a buffer between themselves and that confidential information," Crenshaw-Logal said.  "This is a dangerous precedent and we want to get it nipped in the bud through federal litigation.

The Power Over Poverty Under Laws of America Restored (POPULAR) organization also mailed a letter to the Taylor County District Attorney today, asking that he remove himself from the Mellen, and also announced that it would begin a two-year evaluation of the impact of the DA's closed file policy on felony cases, Crenshaw-Logal said.

Related:

• Organization Fears Child Porn Arrest is Fishy