March 28, 2024

Federal appeals court says warrantless wiretapping is legal

Federal appeals court says warrantless wiretapping is legal

A federal appeals court has ruled today that the US government can tap into Americans’ communications without worrying over frivolous things like “being sued” by its people. In what most sane civilians will probably see as a depressing loss of protection, a three-judge panel of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that citizens can sue the United States for damages stemming from the use of information collected via wiretap, but not for the collection of information itself. In typical pass-the-buck fashion, Wired reports that Judge Michael Daly Hawkins and Judge Harry Pregerson added the following: “Although such a structure may seem anomalous and even unfair, the policy judgment is one for Congress, not the courts.” Alrighty. For those unaware, the back and forth surrounding this issue extends back to Congress’ authorization of the Bush spy program in 2008, and more specifically, a pair of US lawyers and the now-defunct al-Haramain Islamic Foundation — a group that was granted over $ 2.5 million combined in legal fees after proving that they were spied on sans warrants. The full report can be found in the PDF below.

Filed under: Internet

Federal appeals court says warrantless wiretapping is legal originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Aug 2012 16:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wired  |  sourceUS Court of Appeals [PDF]  | Email this | Comments
Engadget

Posts Related to this Article:

About The Techie

The Techie knows all about gadgets and devices. His helpful reviews inform readers of the latest advances in electronics and other tech products. Look to The Techie for all things technology.