http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N1612011.htm
US judge orders response on eavesdropping records
17 Feb 2006 02:02:36 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Adds Justice Department comment, paragraphs 8-9)
By James Vicini
WASHINGTON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department must
respond within 20 days to requests by a civil liberties group for
documents about President George W. Bush's domestic eavesdropping
program, a federal judge ruled on Thursday.
The ruling was a victory for the Electronic Privacy Information
Center, which sued the department under the Freedom of Information
Act in seeking the release of the documents.
U.S. District Judge Henry Kennedy ordered the department to finish
processing the group's requests and produce or identify all records
within 20 days.
"Given the great public and media attention that the government's
warrantless surveillance program has garnered and the recent hearings
before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the public interest is
particularly well served by the timely release of the requested
documents," he said.
Kennedy also ordered the department to give the center a document
index and declaration stating its justification for withholding any
documents within 30 days.
David Sobel, the group's general counsel, said, "The court's opinion
vindicates the public's right to know about an extremely invasive and
potentially illegal government program."
Anthony Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties
Union, which filed a similar lawsuit, said, "Now the Justice
Department must turn over documents showing the extent of the ...
warrantless domestic surveillance program."
The Justice Department said its lawyers were reviewing the judges's ruling.
"The Department of Justice has been extremely forthcoming in
providing documents and information about the administration's legal
authorities for the terrorist surveillance program and the department
will continue to meet its obligations under FOIA," spokeswoman Tasia
Scolinos said.
The Washington-based Electronic Privacy Information Center sought
documents from four Justice Department offices, including the office
of the attorney general, after The New York Times first reported the
eavesdropping program's existence on Dec. 16.
It argued that the department played a key role in authorizing,
implementing and overseeing the program, which involves surveillance
by the National Security Agency.
Records sought by the group include an audit of the program, a
"checklist" guide used to determine whether an individual's phone or
e-mail messages could be monitored, documents showing how information
gleaned through eavesdropping had been used, and other legal opinions
about the program.
The program, adopted by Bush after the Sept. 11 attacks, allows the
monitoring of international communications into and out of the United
States of persons linked to al Qaeda or related terrorist groups.
Disclosure of the program has sparked criticism from Democrats and
some Republicans, with many lawmakers questioning whether Bush
overstepped his authority. Civil liberties groups have filed lawsuits
challenging the program's legality.
The Justice Department had told the electronic privacy center it
would process its requests for documents quickly, but never gave an
anticipated completion date. (Additional reporting by Deborah Charles
and David Morgan)
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