July, 22 2009, 08:00am EDT
Oral Arguments TODAY in FISA Amendments Act Lawsuit
ACLU in Court to Challenge Unconstitutional Spying Law
NEW YORK
The American Civil Liberties Union will be in court today for oral
arguments in its landmark challenge to the unconstitutional FISA
Amendments Act (FAA), which gives the government virtually unchecked
power to intercept Americans' international e-mails and telephone
calls. The ACLU filed a lawsuit to stop the government from spying
under the FAA less than an hour after the Act was signed into law by
President Bush on July 10, 2008. Recent news reports have indicated
that the National Security Agency has exceeded the already overbroad
limits granted to it under the FAA.
The case was filed on behalf of a
broad coalition of attorneys and human rights, labor, legal and media
organizations whose ability to perform their work - which relies on
confidential communications - is greatly compromised by the law.
Plaintiffs in the case are The Nation
and contributing journalists Naomi Klein and Chris Hedges; defense
attorneys Dan Arshack, David Nevin, Scott McKay and Sylvia Royce; and
Amnesty International USA, Global Rights, Global Fund for Women, Human
Rights Watch, PEN American Center, Service Employees International
Union, Washington Office on Latin America and the International
Criminal Defense Attorneys Association.
WHAT:
Oral arguments in the ACLU's challenge to the unconstitutional FISA Amendments Act of 2008
WHEN:
Today, Wednesday, July 22, 2009
10:00 a.m. EDT
WHERE:
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse, Courtroom 12B
500 Pearl St.
New York, NY 10007
WHO:
Jameel Jaffer, Director of the ACLU
National Security Project, will argue on behalf of the plaintiffs
before Judge John G. Koeltl.
More information about the case,
including the ACLU's complaint, a video discussing the legal challenge
and plaintiff statements in support of the lawsuit, is available online
at: www.aclu.org/faa
The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
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