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The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Fatima Khan, (617) 216-7089, media@muslimadvocates.org 

Jen Nessel, CCR, (212) 614-6449, jnessel@ccrjustice.org

NYPD Muslim Spying Program in Appeals Court Tuesday, January 13

On Tuesday, January 13, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia will hear arguments over whether individuals in New Jersey targeted and surveilled by the New York City Police Department (NYPD) solely because of their religious affiliation - and without any criminal suspicion - have the right to challenge the policy in court. The case, Hassan v.

PHILADELPHIA

On Tuesday, January 13, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia will hear arguments over whether individuals in New Jersey targeted and surveilled by the New York City Police Department (NYPD) solely because of their religious affiliation - and without any criminal suspicion - have the right to challenge the policy in court. The case, Hassan v. the City of New York, was dismissed last year by a federal district court judge who ruled that any harm to the plaintiffs was caused not by the NYPD's discriminatory surveillance program but by the Associated Press for its prize-winning series of articles that exposed the illegal program. The spying program was started under the Bloomberg administration, and the de Blasio administration continues to defend the program rather than discontinue it or settle this case as it did other racial profiling NYPD lawsuits.

Co-counsel Muslim Advocates and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) will argue that the dismissal of the case was improper and that it is the court's duty to review the program's legality.

Hassan v. the City of New York is brought on behalf of eleven plaintiffs, among them a decorated Iraq war veteran, current and former Rutgers University students, a coalition of New Jersey mosques, and the proprietors of a grade-school for Muslim girls. Each was targeted and surveilled by the NYPD solely on account of their religious affiliation.

What: Oral Argument in Hassan v. the City of New York

Lawyers and plaintiffs for Hassan will be available for the press right after the argument

When:Tuesday, January 13, 2015 at 10:00 a.m.We advise arriving 30-45 minutes early to go through security.

Where: James A. Byrne United States Courthouse, 601 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19106

The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. CCR is committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.

(212) 614-6464