August 15, 2007
AT&T Must Face Justice for Illegal Spying
NSA Surveillance Comes Under Fire Today in Appeals Court Battle
San Francisco - In a packed San Francisco courtroom today, the
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) urged the 9th U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals to allow AT&T customers to continue to fight against
illegal spying on their telephone and Internet communications.
EFF is representing the plaintiffs in Hepting v. AT&T, a
class-action lawsuit brought by AT&T customers accusing the giant
telco of violating their rights by illegally assisting the National
Security Agency in domestic surveillance. The U.S. government is
fighting to get the class-action lawsuit thrown out of court,
contending that the litigation jeopardizes state secrets.
"The courts cannot permit the government to evade responsibility for
unconstitutional activities with thin claims of 'state secrets.'
Without judicial review, there is no way to stop abuses of power," said
EFF Legal Director Cindy Cohn. "The courts are well equipped to protect
state secrets while determining whether the spying is illegal and if
so, to put a stop to it."
"In trying to shut down this case, the government is hoping to avoid
accountability for spying on millions of AT&T customers," said EFF
Staff Attorney Kevin Bankston. "Our system of checks and balances is
supposed to thwart abuses of power. The White House is trying to wiggle
out of those checks by taking the courts out of the picture."
Also Wednesday, the court heard arguments on the future of
Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v. Bush, a case alleging that the
federal agents illegally wiretapped calls between the charity and its
lawyers. The government also wants this case dismissed on state secrets
grounds.
"The President is trying to hide behind a veil of false secrecy to
evade a judicial determination that he broke the law. We're asking the
court to see through that ploy," said Jon B. Eisenberg of Eisenberg and
Hancock, LLP, attorney for the Al-Haramain plaintiffs.
C-SPAN television recorded today's hearing and said it would air later in the day.
The appeals court did not make a ruling Wednesday. The decision will be released at a later date.
Contacts:
Rebecca Jeschke
Media Coordinator
Electronic Frontier Foundation
press@eff.org
Jon B. Eisenberg
Attorney for the Al-Haramain plaintiffs
Eisenberg and Hancock, LLP
jon@eandhlaw.com
Ashlee Albies
Attorney for the Al-Haramain plaintiffs
ashlee@albieslaw.com
August 09, 2007
Appeals Court Battle Over NSA Surveillance on August 15
Government Aims to Block Accountability for Illegal Spying on Americans
San Francisco - In the wake of Congress approving a dramatic
expansion of U.S. warrantless wiretapping powers, the 9th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals will hear arguments on the future of two critical
lawsuits over illegal surveillance of Americans. The hearing is set for
August 15, at 2 p.m. in San Francisco.
The government is fighting to get the cases thrown out of court,
contending that the litigation jeopardizes state secrets. The
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is representing the plaintiffs in
Hepting v. AT&T, which accuses the telecom giant of collaborating
with the National Security Agency (NSA) in illegal electronic
surveillance of millions of AT&T's customers. The court will also
hear the arguments on the future of Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v.
Bush, a case alleging that the government illegally wiretapped calls
between the charity and its lawyers.
"At issue here is whether the courts have any meaningful role to
play in protecting Americans' privacy from Executive branch abuses of
its surveillance powers," said EFF Legal Director Cindy Cohn. "If the
claim of 'state secrets' is allowed to shut down litigation, then the
courts will never be able to exercise their Constitutional duty to hold
the White House accountable for illegal and even unconstitutional
abuses of power."
The court has scheduled one hour of arguments for Hepting v.
AT&T, and 40 minutes for Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v. Bush.
Because of the large number of attendees expected at Wednesday's
hearing, the court will provide an overflow room with audio and video
of the proceedings for spectators who cannot get a seat in the
courtroom itself.
For more information about attending the hearing, contact press@eff.org.
WHAT:
Hepting v. AT&T
Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v. Bush
WHEN:
2 p.m.
Wednesday, August 15
WHERE:
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Courtroom 1, 3rd Floor
95 Seventh Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
For more on EFF's case against AT&T:
http://www.eff.org/legal/cases/att
Contacts:
Rebecca Jeschke
Media Coordinator
Electronic Frontier Foundation
press@eff.org
Cindy Cohn
Legal Director
Electronic Frontier Foundation
cindy@eff.org
Lisa Jaskol
Attorney for the Al-Haramain plaintiffs
ljaskol@earthlink.net
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