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from the classified-[redacted]-[redacted]-case-dismissed-[redacted] dept.
Justice Department lawyers have asked a federal court in Pittsburgh to dismiss a sweeping lawsuit brought earlier this year by a local lawyer against President Barack Obama and other top intelligence officials.
In a new motion to dismiss filed on Monday, the government told the court that the Pittsburgh lawyer, Elliott Schuchardt, lacked standing to make a claim that his rights under the Fourth Amendment have been violated as a result of multiple ongoing surveillance programs.
Specifically, Schuchardt argued in his June 2014 complaint that both metadata and content of his Gmail, Facebook, and Dropbox accounts were compromised under the PRISM program as revealed in the documents leaked by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Sir Garlon on Friday October 24 2014, @02:52PM
I'm not a lawyer either, but as I understand it, he has to show that the defendant's alleged actions personally affected him. This is a long established legal principle that acts as a filter to prevent random people filing frivolous lawsuits against everyone in the hope of winning the lottery. Like all legal principles, it is subject to, let's say, tactical application by a good lawyer (that's what lawyers do).
It is awfully hard to show that one was specifically harmed by dragnet surveillance when the surveillance data and all records pertaining to its access and use are classified in the name of "national security." DOJ lawyers know this and challenge the plaintiff's standing. This puts the burden on the plaintiff to show he was harmed, while the fact that the evidence is classified means that the plaintiff is denied access to all the relevant evidence. So, case closed.
This is a common pattern used not only in NSA surveillance cases, but also in "terrorism" or espionage cases of any kind. The government controls the evidence and they can withhold, destroy, or fabricate it at their pleasure.
[Sir Garlon] is the marvellest knight that is now living, for he destroyeth many good knights, for he goeth invisible.