[privacy] Feds Drop Bomb on EFF Lawsuit

["Fergie" <fergdawg () netzero net>]

Ryan Singel writes over on the new '27B Stroke 6' blog:

[snip]

The federal government intends to invoke the rarely used "State Secrets Privilege" -- the legal equivalent of a nuclear 
bomb -- in the Electronic Frontier Foundation's class action lawsuit against AT&T that alleges the telecom collaborated 
with the government's secret spying on American citizens.

The State Secrets Privilege is a vestige from English common law that lets the executive branch step into a civil 
lawsuit and have it dismissed if the case might reveal information that puts national security at risk.

Today's assertion severely darkens the prospects of the EFF's lawsuit, which the organization had hoped would shine 
light on the extent of the Bush Administration's admitted warrantless spying on Americans.

The government is not admitting, however, that AT&T aided the National Security Agency in spying on American's phone 
calls and internet communications.

[snip]

I'd venture to say that they probably are, though.

More here:
http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/27BStroke6/index.blog?entry_id=1468765

- ferg

--
"Fergie", a.k.a. Paul Ferguson
 Engineering Architecture for the Internet
 fergdawg () netzero net or fergdawg () sbcglobal net
 ferg's tech blog: http://fergdawg.blogspot.com/

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