49ers sued over patdowns

The San Francisco 49ers were a team that many football fans in the '80s and '90s loved to hate, but now it appears that the 49ers love to hate their own fans.

Spectators at Candlestick Park are now suing the Niners plumb to court. The lawsuit, which is now before the California Supreme Court, stems from the 49ers enforcing the NFL's idiotic policy of intimately frisking fans.

The patdowns weren't instituted until 2005 and are ineffective. I've boycotted even watching NFL games on TV since then, because of this policy. A federal judge ordered a halt to the searches in Tampa Bay, but an appeals court inexplicably overruled that decision.

In California, however, you'd think the plaintiffs would have better luck, because the state constitution is quite explicit about privacy rights. A 1972 referendum placed limits on corporations violating the right to privacy in this manner.

Despite this, several of the justices don't seem to place a high priority on what the law (which was passed by voters, no less) actually says. One of them complained that overturning the 49ers' frisking policy might upset some fans. Tough shit. This case is supposed to be about the law, not hurt feelings.

With the law in California being as clear as it is, the Niners seem out of luck. But right-wing judicial activism isn't unheard of even in the Golden State, so keep an eye on this case.

(Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/06/BA23154I01.DTL&tsp=1)