“A federal judge ruled Monday that the National Security Agency program which collects information on nearly all telephone calls made to, from or within the United States is likely to be unconstitutional,” Josh Gerstein reports for Politico. “U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon found that the program appears to violate the Fourth Amendment prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures. He also said the Justice Department had failed to demonstrate that collecting the so-called metadata had helped to head off terrorist attacks.”
“Acting on a lawsuit brought by conservative legal activist Larry Klayman, Leon issued a preliminary injunction barring the NSA from collecting metadata pertaining to the Verizon accounts of Klayman and one of his clients. However, the judge stayed the order to allow for an appeal,” Gerstein reports. “‘I cannot imagine a more ‘indiscriminate’ and ‘arbitrary invasion’ than this systematic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data on virtually every single citizen for purposes of querying it and analyzing it without judicial approval,’ wrote Leon, an appointee of President George W. Bush.”
“The judge’s ruling was issued just before White House press secretary Jay Carney took the podium for the daily press briefing. Carney said he was unaware of the decision and he referred inquiries to the Justice Department,” Gerstein reports. “‘We are reviewing the court’s decision,’ DOJ spokesman Andrew Ames said.
Similar lawsuits challenging the program are pending in at least three other federal courts around the country.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: United States Constitution, Amendment IV:
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. – Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759
Visit reformgovernmentsurveillance.com today.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “theloniousMac” for the heads up.]
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D’uh.
The most obviously unneeded “likely”, ever.
The rest of his language was a bit stronger : )
“I cannot imagine a more ‘indiscriminate’ and ‘arbitrary invasion’ than this systematic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data on virtually every single citizen for purposes of querying it and analyzing it without judicial approval”
– U.S. District Judge Richard Leon
If they appeal they will appear even more weasel-like than they already do.
The perspectives of judges nowadays are no more rational than market analysts. Can’t really rely on…
Just hope that this judge is one of the few with a spine.
The nice side of this story is that the Judge is a Bush appointee. Nice to know not all Republicans have bought in to the national surveillance state.
They never did. This is an Obama administration maneuver.
Spying on Americans has increased 1000% under Obama.
http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/06/11/18887491-fbi-sharply-increases-use-of-patriot-act-provision-to-collect-us-citizens-records
This started under Dubya’s watch. I do not dispute Obama has put the program on steroids, but Bush was doing this and both should have a day in court over this.
60 minutes had a segment last night were many of the press versions of the process were shown to be false and they demonstrated how the system works. If need be, it is apparent that they could automate it further to eliminate user access to everything except the foreign connections to citizens that can be presented to courts for further scrutiny.
It’s scary that a person like you would see that 60 Minutes report and walk away with the impression that the press reports were false. That’s what the NSA wanted you to think.
You have to parse the language very carefully. Nothing in the 60 Minutes story refuted what we’ve been reading in the press for the last 6 months. Nothing.
Just a few of the issues:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/16/nsa-surveillance-60-minutes-cbs-facts
But the biggest issue is that 60 Minutes didn’t challenge anything said by the NSA. Last night you’d think everything was lawful and above-board.
Today a Federal Judge said that the phone records program was ineffective and unlawful. He said the “The almost-Orwellian technology” is “almost certainly” unconstitutional.
Tis The Season
After a few more terrorist incidents in the US, lets see what this asswipe judge says.
Hey Federal Judge Dumbass, leave off the first two words of your name and it would be much more accurate.
BTW, who is sending you a government check to troll websites like MDN and spew the government’s propaganda?
Federal Judge Dumbass, another one who hasn’t figured this quote out yet:
“If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best black man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him someone to look down on and he’ll empty his pockets for you. — Lyndon Johnson
And it works like this too:
“If you can convince the common man that he’s in mortal danger, he won’t notice you’re taking away his rights. Hell, give him someone to be afraid of and he’ll build his own jail cell for you.” — Zeke
SCOTUS will disagree, unfortunately.
A judge with common sense… Who woulda thunk…
superb.
Of course if it’s appealed all the way up to the Supreme Court, the 4th amendment is doomed. The current judge got it right. Don’t mean squat at the dist. level.
Denise Cote would be violating the 4th Ammendment?
I mean, sanctioning a lawyer friend to spy on Apple’s internal workings. Hmmm.
The Supreme Court will strike down this ruling. This is not really a Fourth Ammendment issue. This judge doesn’t understand technology. It’s not about search and seisure… Or securing your personal papers. If this is the best the Anti-NSA side has, they’re doomed. This is about communication. This is the same principal that protects wire-taps. It’s based on the idea that if you communicate something in public that you lose the right to privacy. The Supreme Court will rule that when you go online, it is the same thing as having a conversation in public. If you want to “secure your papers.” Keep them off your communication device.
Though your iphone is a communication device, it might have all your intimate data because it is also a computer designed to help you with all your life needs. For that matter your home computer which is connected to the net (otherwise it would be useless) can be considered a communication device. This ruling you speak of means the use of technology today should strip us of fourth amendment rights. I don’t buy that the country has to choose between keeping their Bill Of Rights but living like cavemen or making technological progress which is the only hope for this country economically. These legal people have so much education but can’t see the consequence of such ridiculous police-state mentality?
Like that Oliver Stone video suggests, this government is supposed to serve the people, as in helping, not hindering, technological and economical progress. The Supreme Court, as Thomas suggests, will aim to bring back the caveman and put advanced people in observation tanks for the powers that be to exploit. Ridiculous. If true, then we need to get rid of this government that steps on us, and make a new government that the people control.
With all the anti-government, conservatives talking about destroying the federal government becuase they don’t like our democraticallly elected officals, legislation, or the rule of law, I expect nothing less than what the NSA is doing. I think we should take it seriously when conservatives openly dream about revolution; if they want to refight the Civil War, fine. The Union will always win.
I’m not anti-government, just against leaders who are obviously puppets to omnipotent bad guys. We just need to vote out all sitting politicians and have the new guys fix things. For one thing, get rid of the NSA, and another, the huge databases being built where the NSA stores brontobytes of information on each of us, data that would be used to bribe, extort or crush anyone in the way of a hostile takeover. We should stip laws of legalese, so as to take the justice system out of the exclusive hands of modern day priests in robes, and give the power back to the people. You’re right though, the NSA is designed to protect the powers that be, not the people.
By priests in robes, I was referring to olden times when only the priest had the power to interpret the laws because God supposedly spoke the laws only to the priests. Questioning that was heresy and probably torture and death. Today only people with big degrees and high station can interpret and write the endless page laws, and questioning, let alone understanding, this legalese is completely out of reach of me at least.
Hey Thomas, look up “principal” (headmaster, client, investment) and “principle” (a founding proposition for a system of beliefs) in your Thesaurus.
Then write, “This is the same principle that protects wire-taps.”
Without the documents leaked by Edward Snowden, we would not know the extent of the NSAs spying on ordinary Americans.
Again I’m struck at how S L O W L Y the US court systems move. Many citizens out here on the streets knew this was unconstitutional this past SPRING!
Hello in there! I’ll gladly pay for your coffee! Just Wake The Hell Up In There!
Even more sleepy, I’m afraid, is the general citizenry. I want to hear that ‘impeachment’ word ringing in the streets.