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Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency - One of Nation's Largest Student Loan Servicers - Should Not Be Immune From Consumer's Lawsuit
Representing Virginia Student, Public Citizen Appeals to Fourth Circuit
WASHINGTON
The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) - one of the nation's largest student loan servicers - should not be immune from suit for violating the Fair Credit Report Act, Public Citizen told the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals today in a brief.
The outcome of the case could affect the legal remedies available to thousands of student borrowers and their families. Little case law exists addressing the question of whether most state loan guarantee agencies have "sovereign immunity" - that is, whether they are treated like states themselves and are therefore immune from lawsuits seeking damages for any type of wrongdoing.
In 2013, Fairfax County, Va., resident Lee Pele sued PHEAA under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, alleging that PHEAA had failed to correct inaccurate reports stating that Pele had defaulted on tens of thousands of dollars in student loans - loans that were not, in fact, his. PHEAA sent those erroneous reports to credit agencies, threatening to hamper Pele's plans to finish graduate school and buy a home.
A district court in October found that PHEAA was immune from suit because it is an arm of the state. Public Citizen is representing Pele in the appeal.
Scott Michelman, the Public Citizen attorney representing Pele, explained, "This case is about holding a major financial corporation accountable for its actions. PHEAA does more than $100 billion worth of student-loan business. The fact that PHEAA is affiliated with a state should not entitle it to operate with impunity."
In addition to Pele's lawsuit, PHEAA is defending a separate case claiming that it defrauded the federal government and another case claiming that it violated its employees' rights under federal and state wage-and-hour laws. In each of these cases, PHEAA has asserted that sovereign immunity requires dismissal.
"For my generation, student loans are such a big part of our lives, so it's unfathomable that this huge loan agency wouldn't be responsible when they make mistakes that affect borrowers' lives so significantly," said Pele, 28, who is finishing his MBA at George Mason University. "I never want anyone else to experience what I did - having my credit history marred by debts that aren't mine and to have to put my life on hold."
PHEAA was created in 1963 by the Pennsylvania Legislature. In 2008, it stopped lending directly to students; now it primarily services and guarantees loans for students nationwide. It also operates under the names American Education Services and FedLoan Servicing.
Although it was established by the state, it does not meet the legal test for being an arm of the state, Public Citizen argues, because:
- PHEAA's operations are financially independent of state funding;
- The state is not legally or functionally liable for a judgment against PHEAA;
- More than two-thirds of PHEAA's loan guarantee and loan servicing businesses (which together account for more than 90 percent of PHEAA's business) consist of non-Pennsylvania loans;
- PHEAA's own legal filings in 2010 and 2011 identified it as a "citizen of Pennsylvania," a status that is legally incompatible with being an arm of the state;
- The Fourth Circuit in United States ex. rel. Oberg v. PHEAA held earlier this year that PHEAA was not an arm of the state.
Hugo Blankingship and Tom Christiano of Blankingship & Christiano in Reston, Virginia, represented Pele in the trial court and are co-counsel with Public Citizen on the appeal.
Read the brief and learn more about the case.
Public Citizen is a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization that champions the public interest in the halls of power. We defend democracy, resist corporate power and work to ensure that government works for the people - not for big corporations. Founded in 1971, we now have 500,000 members and supporters throughout the country.
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Pakistani Authorities Accused of Trying to Cover Up Killings of Protesters
"All records of dead and injured have been confiscated by authorities," said one doctor. "We are not allowed to talk. Senior government officials are visiting the hospital to hide the records."
Nov 27, 2024
The Guardianreported Wednesday that at least 17 civilians in Pakistan were killed and hundreds more were wounded by army and paramilitary gunfire at protesters and one doctor in Islamabad claimed that authorities were attempting to cover up deaths.
"At least seven have died and four are in critical condition in the hospital," according to the unnamed doctor, who said that on Tuesday night he treated over 40 patients, many injured by gunfire. "Eight more have been admitted to the hospital with bullet wounds."
"All records of dead and injured have been confiscated by authorities," added the emergency doctor, who requested anonymity for his safety. "We are not allowed to talk. Senior government officials are visiting the hospital to hide the records."
The newspaper noted that its reporter "witnessed at least five patients with bullet wounds in one hospital, which was surrounded by police."
"Yet again, protestors in Pakistan have faced a brutal and lethal crackdown shrouded in a callous opacity by the authorities."
Supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have converged on Islamabad this week. Troops were supposedly given "shoot-on-site" orders as the protesters closed in on D-Chowk, a popular square in the capital near multiple government buildings, calling for fair elections and the release of Khan, who says the charges against him are politically motivated.
"Islamabad's police chief, Ali Rizvi, denied that live ammunition had been used during the operation, which he said police had conducted alongside paramilitary forces," Reutersreported. "Rizvi said 600 protesters had been arrested in Tuesday's operation, bringing the total since the protest sit-in began on Sunday to 954."
The office of Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement that "as of now, no death has been reported, and the claims circulating regarding any such incidents are baseless and unverified."
According to Reuters:
Visiting protest sites on Wednesday, Naqvi said law enforcement agencies had successfully cleared protesters from the site of the sit-in and other areas of the capital.
He called on PTI to provide any evidence of the firing of live ammunition by security forces, and said it had not provided any details of deaths of its supporters.
PTI said on social media Tuesday that "a massacre has unfolded in Pakistan at the hands of security forces under the brutal, fascist military regime led by the Shehbaz-Zardari-Asim alliance. The nation is drowning in blood. Today, armed security forces launched a violent assault on peaceful PTI protesters in Islamabad, firing live rounds with the intent to kill as many people as possible."
On Wednesday, PTI highlighted The Guardian's reporting—calling it "alarming"—and shared an image of protesters that the party said are "confirmed dead as a result of direct firing by security forces."
Multiple U.S. lawmakers have condemned the crackdown on PTI protesters in Pakistan. Congressman Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who has spoken out multiple times this week, took note of The Guardian's reporting on Wednesday.
"Horrified by reports of an attempted cover-up of the alleged killings of peaceful protesters by Asim Munir's regime in Pakistan," Khanna said, referring to Pakistan's chief of the army staff. "The U.S. must impose visa bans and asset freezes on senior officials in the military regime."
Drop Site News journalist Murtaza Hussain explained that "visa bans and asset freezes on Pakistani officials would be [a] nuclear event," because "everyone knows their assets are all in Western countries where they also spend all their free time."
Amnesty International, which on Tuesday demanded that the government rescind the shoot-on-site orders and "exercise maximum restraint" in response to protests, issued a Wednesday statement calling for an urgent and transparent investigation.
"Yet again, protestors in Pakistan have faced a brutal and lethal crackdown shrouded in a callous opacity by the authorities," said Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty's deputy regional director for South Asia. "The escalation of violence, shutdown of mobile internet services, mass detentions, and alarming rhetoric against PTI protesters by the authorities speaks of a pattern of intolerance for the right to freedom of peaceful assembly throughout the country. Similar clampdowns against Baloch and Pashtun protesters were witnessed earlier this year."
"Disturbing reports and testimonies regarding the unlawful use of force including lethal ammunition against protesters, during a government-enforced communication blackout, are emerging from yesterday," the campaigner noted. "Continued restrictions on reporting by media and independent observers have made it difficult to verify the number of casualties and raise urgent questions about accountability for human rights abuses."
"Amnesty International calls for a prompt, thorough, impartial, effective, and transparent investigation into the deaths and injuries of protesters as well as the unlawful use of force including lethal and less-lethal weapons by security personnel," he added. "Authorities must also immediately release all protesters detained solely for exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly."
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'Heartbreakingly Devastating': US Reportedly Plans to Approve $680 Million in Arms to Israel
"The Biden administration seems to be ready and willing to keep piling more and more, despite Gaza descending into what President Biden just yesterday described as 'hell,'" said Amnesty International USA.
Nov 27, 2024
Just hours after a
cease-fire between the Israeli government and Lebanese group Hezbollah took effect, the Financial Times revealed that "U.S. President Joe Biden has provisionally approved a $680 million weapons sale to Israel," which has also spent the past nearly 14 months decimating the Hamas-governed Gaza Strip.
Citing unnamed people familiar with the matter, the British newspaper reported that "U.S. officials recently briefed Congress on the plan to provide thousands of additional joint direct attack munition kits to Israel, known as JDAMS, as well as hundreds of small-diameter bombs."
The Biden administration's decision to advance the sale was subsequently confirmed by Reuters, which reported that "the package has been in the works for several months. It was first brought to the congressional committees in September then submitted for review in October."
Human rights advocates critical of Israel's assaults on Lebanon and Gaza—which has led to a genocide case at the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant—responded with alarm to the new reporting.
"If these reports are true, it's heartbreakingly devastating news," said Amnesty International USA. "These are the weapons that our research has shown were used to wipe out entire families, without any discernable military objective."
Amnesty highlighted a trio of resolutions from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) that would have halted some arms sales to Israel. Although they failed to pass the Senate last week, the group was among several that noted over the course of three votes, 17, 18, and 19 senators supported halting weapons sales, "sending a clear signal that U.S. policy must change."
"Yet, the Biden administration seems to be ready and willing to keep piling more and more, despite Gaza descending into what President Biden just yesterday described as 'hell,'" Amnesty added Wednesday. "Sending more weapons that have been used to maim and kill with impunity doesn't just put in jeopardy Palestinian lives and the elusive cease-fire the president is seeking, but also President Biden's own legacy."
The Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project declared Wednesday that "President Biden is spending the final days of his presidency going against the will of most Americans, U.S. law, and international law."
"The weapons included in this package have been used by Israel in numerous apparent war crimes," the organization noted. "On July 13, 2024, Israel attacked a so-called 'safe zone' in al-Mawasi, in which internally displaced Palestinians were sheltering, killing at least 90 people and injuring hundreds more. A
CNN investigation found that Israel carried out this attack with at least one JDAM."
John Ramming Chappell, an adviser on legal and policy issues at the Center for Civilians in Conflict, similarly
stressed that "these are the very same weapons that for months Israeli forces have used to kill Palestinian civilians and violate international humanitarian law."
"Continuing arms transfers risks making the United States and US officials complicit in war crimes," he said. "These arms sales are unlawful as a matter of both U.S. and international law. They are immoral. The congressional committees of jurisdiction can and must place a hold on the sales."
Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now, pointed out that "aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity is itself a crime for which U.S. officials may (and should) face prosecution at the ICC."
Neither the U.S. nor Israel is a state party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, though Palestine is. Both the Biden administration and President-elect Donald Trump's pick for national security adviser have attacked the warrants for Israeli leaders.
In a speech to Israelis on Tuesday, Netanyahu said that one of the reasons for the cease-fire in Lebanon "is to give our forces a breather and replenish stocks. And I say it openly, it is no secret that there have been big delays in weapons and munitions deliveries. These delays will be resolved soon. We will receive supplies of advanced weaponry that will keep our soldiers safe and give us more strike force to complete our mission."
According to the Financial Times:
U.S. officials have denied there is any explicit link between the cease-fire deal and approval for the latest weapons delivery. While the cease-fire deal includes a so-called side letter from the U.S. to Israel, setting out Washington's support for a certain freedom of Israeli action, people familiar with the text said it included no guarantees of weapon sales.
U.S. officials also deny that there have been deliberate delays to weapons shipments, aside from shipments of 2,000-pound bombs, which Biden paused earlier this year over concerns about their use in densely populated areas of Gaza.
The Times of Israelreported that Biden's State Department declined to confirm the advancement of the package but said that U.S. support for Israel in the face of Iran-backed threats is "unwavering" and all weapon transfers are carried out in line with federal law.
"We have made clear that Israel must comply with international humanitarian law, has a moral obligation and strategic imperative to protect civilians, investigate allegations of any wrongdoing, and ensure accountability for any abuses or violations of international human rights law or international humanitarian law," the State Department said.
As of Wednesday, officials in Gaza said the death toll had hit at least 44,282 Palestinians with another 104,880 people injured.
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As US Celebrates Thanksgiving, Israel-Imposed Starvation and Suffering in Gaza Intensifies
"There is no military necessity or justification under international law that permits the prevention of basic necessities from reaching a civilian population."
Nov 27, 2024
As millions prepared to celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States on Wednesday, human rights advocates provided dispatches from nearly 6,000 miles away in Gaza, where the Biden administration has continued to provide political and military support for Israel's onslaught despite public disapproval for the war among Americans.
Palestinians in Gaza are now facing their second winter amid Israel's bombardment and near-total blockade on humanitarian aid, which began in October 2023.
The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor said in a statement that Israel's blocking of deliveries including blankets, shoes, and clothing has left Gaza's 2.3 million—nearly half of whom are children—vulnerable to the elements, especially since at least 70% of homes in the enclave have been destroyed in the last 13 months.
"Euro-Med Monitor notes that Israel restricts the entry of such items as part of its efforts to impose harsh living conditions on the Palestinian people that will ultimately lead to their actual destruction, as part of the comprehensive crime of genocide it is committing in the Gaza Strip," said the group. "There is no military necessity or justification under international law that permits the prevention of basic necessities from reaching a civilian population."
At least 1.9 million people in Gaza are internally displaced, and as Euro-Med Monitor said, "the vast majority of displaced people in the Gaza Strip continue to live in tents that do not provide adequate protection from the cold and rain."
"The war in Gaza is a war on children. There is no plainer way to illustrate this than to look at the people who make up the death figures—over 4 in every 10 people verified killed in Gaza are children."
Hundreds of thousands of people, including women, children, and elderly people, have been left without appropriate clothing for harsh weather—and at greater risk of contracting respiratory infections and other illnesses, which health authorities in the enclave are poorly equipped to treat due to Israel's blockade.
A woman named Ruba told the humanitarian group Save the Children that in northern Gaza, where Israel began an offensive in early October, she has been "trapped with [her] children under relentless bombs, rockets, and bullets, with nowhere to run."
"My mother is paralyzed, and I cannot leave her behind. My brother has been killed, my husband was taken, and I don't know if he's alive. Our home was destroyed over our heads, and we survived by a miracle," Ruba said.
"With no food, no clean water, and constant fear, both my children have developed rashes, and my daughter is passing blood, but there is no medicine, no help, and absolutely nothing I can do," she continued. "They cry and ask me why we can't just leave, why their father isn't with us, why we can't go back to a normal life.”
Humanitarian workers with the group have observed children barefoot in streets littered with sewage and debris from Israeli attacks, sometimes walking "in the rain while wearing only light, shabby clothing."
"Children who lack shoes are more likely to sustain wounds and injuries, leaving them susceptible to infection in an environment devoid of medical supplies and medications because of the strict blockade," said Euro-Med Monitor.
"Israel's continuous and severe deprivation of the fundamental necessities of life is an act of genocide, as it seeks to strip the Palestinian population of the most basic means of protection, with the aim of physically erasing their existence," said the group. "Children and other vulnerable groups are specifically targeted by Israel as they are more affected by this deprivation, which exacerbates their suffering and raises the death rates among them; due to the lack of refuge from winter weather, these rates will undoubtedly spike without international intervention."
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) warned Wednesday that severe food shortages are also set to worsen without immediate international intervention and a cease-fire.
The groups' warnings come two weeks after the passing of a U.S.-imposed deadline for Israel to significantly ramp up humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza. The Biden administration in October ordered Israel to allow at least 350 aid trucks into Gaza per day, or else it would invoke U.S. laws that prohibit the government from providing military aid to countries that block U.S. humanitarian relief.
But even as experts said Israel was continuing its blockade and failing to meet the Biden administration's terms, the U.S. took no action to end its support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israel Defense Forces.
"The war in Gaza is a war on children," said Jeremy Stoner, regional director of Save the Children. "There is no plainer way to illustrate this than to look at the people who make up the death figures—over 4 in every 10 people verified killed in Gaza are children."
"Safe humanitarian access must be granted immediately to allow food, water, winter supplies, and medical assistance to reach those who are trapped in the death zone in the north," added Stoner. "The international community must step up and make sure that happens, in line with their obligations. Without access and a cease-fire, we are condemning children to perish in hell on Earth."
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