First Amendment News

No transparency in the Oakland shootings of SWAT team sergeants

Troubling questions remain about how such experienced Oakland policemen were killed by a single gunman in March. The police chief is withholding 911 tapes and other documents to flout open government laws and keep the media and others from seeking the truth. -DB The Oakland Tribune Commentary July 26, 2009 By Thomas Peele THE SHOOTING DEATHS of four Oakland police officers in March represented perhaps the most tragic day in the history of California law enforcement.

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New York: Journalists among those blocked from bringing electronic devices into federal court

A New York committee is expected to develop a policy placing severe restrictions on electronic devices in the federal court building, except, of course, those belonging to attorneys. -DB Citizen Media Law Project July 27, 2009 By Eric P. Robinson Attorneys in New York are hot and heavy (or should that be a-Twitter?) over rules being drafted by the Southern District of New York’s Ad Hoc Committee on Cell Phones that may place severe restrictions on

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Justice Department seeking secrecy for Cheney interview in Valerie Plame case

In deciding to make records public of Dick Cheney’s interview with prosecutors in the CIA leak case, a federal judge is seeking to balance the public’s right to know with avoiding making public servants leery of cooperating in future investigations. -DB Politico July 21, 2009 By Josh Gerstein President Barack Obama’s Justice Department is arguing that former Vice President Dick Cheney’s interview with prosecutors in the CIA leak case should remain secret for five to

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Foundation sues for records of illegal acts of intelligence agencies

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has filed suit in federal court to force the CIA and other government agencies to disclose reports on possible violations of the law by intelligence agencies during the Bush administration. -DB Electronic Frontier Foundation July 22, 2009 Press Release SAN FRANCISCO – The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed suit today against the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and a half-dozen other federal agencies involved in intelligence gathering, demanding the immediate release of reports

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Federal judge closes civil trial over prison killing

Constitutional lawyers are saying that when a Los Angeles federal judge closed a two-day trial in the 2005 prison killing of a Jewish Defense League activist, he was likely to have violated the First Amendment. -DB Los Angeles Times July 24, 2009 By Carol J. Williams A Los Angeles federal judge took the highly unusual step of closing a two-day trial this week in a case involving the 2005 prison killing of Jewish Defense League activist

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