[Infowarrior] - Federal Judge: Warrantless Wiretaps Illegal

[Richard Forno]

Judge Nixes Warrantless Surveillance

Aug 17, 12:10 PM (ET)

By SARAH KARUSH

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060817/D8JI9A281.html

DETROIT (AP) - A federal judge ruled Thursday that the government's
warrantless wiretapping program is unconstitutional and ordered an immediate
halt to it.

U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor in Detroit became the first judge to
strike down the National Security Agency's program, which she says violates
the rights to free speech and privacy.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuit on behalf of
journalists, scholars and lawyers who say the program has made it difficult
for them to do their jobs. They believe many of their overseas contacts are
likely targets of the program, which involves secretly taping conversations
between people in the U.S. and people in other countries.

The government argued that the program is well within the president's
authority, but said proving that would require revealing state secrets.

The ACLU said the state-secrets argument was irrelevant because the Bush
administration already had publicly revealed enough information about the
program for Taylor to rule.