Privacy Digest

LA Times: Barry Siegel on the State Secrets Privilege: "

On Sunday, the LA Times published an illuminating opinion piece by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Barry Siegel, who demonstrated that the state secrets defense has grown into one of the government's most powerful and clandestine legal tools, and that the federal judiciary is waking to the potential imbalance. He highlights last month's hearing in EFF's case against AT&T, in which a 3-judge panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals probed at the government's continuing assertion of the state secrets privilege.

This apparent skepticism on the part of Pregerson and his fellow judges was highly unusual and may signal a new willingness to question government assertions about national security. In recent years, as the Bush administration has relied more heavily on the state secrets privilege to have cases thrown out of court, judges have generally been willing to concede meekly to the government's argument. Could it be that the government has finally overplayed its hand?

Siegel's opinion piece further explores the history of the state secrets privilege, including its origin in the 1950s, when it was used to hide an embarrassing case of military negligence from the courts and the public.

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(Read Original Article - Via EFF: Deep Links.)