MAY 7, 2015
NEW YORK, NY (AP)
The bulk collection of Americans' phone records by the
government exceeds what Congress has allowed, a federal appeals court said
Thursday as it asked Congress to step in and decide how best to balance
national security and privacy interests. The case is: ACLU, et al. v. James Clapper, et al., Docket No. 14-42-cv, 2nd Circuit, decided May 7, 2015.
A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
in Manhattan permitted the National Security Agency program to continue
temporarily as it exists, but all but pleaded for Congress to better define
where the boundaries exist.
"In light of the asserted national security interests
at stake, we deem it prudent to pause to allow an opportunity for debate in
Congress that may (or may not) profoundly alter the legal landscape," said
the opinion written by Circuit Judge Gerald Lynch.
"If Congress decides to authorize the collection of the
data desired by the government under conditions identical to those now in
place, the program will continue in the future under that authorization,"
the ruling said. "If Congress decides to institute a substantially
modified program, the constitutional issues will certainly differ considerably
from those currently raised."
The appeals judges said the issues raised in a lawsuit by
the American Civil Liberties Union illustrated the complexity of balancing
privacy interests with the nation's security.
A lower court judge in December had thrown out the case,
saying the program was a necessary extension to security measures taken after
the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. The appeals court, which heard two hours of
arguments, said the lower court had erred in ruling that the phone records
collection program was authorized in the manner it was being carried out.
During the December arguments, the judges said the case
would likely be decided ultimately by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The NSA's collection and storage of U.S. landline calling
records — times, dates and numbers but not content of the calls — was the most
controversial program among many disclosed in 2013 by former NSA systems
administrator Edward Snowden. Some NSA officials opposed the program, and
independent evaluations have found it of limited value as a counterterrorism
tool. Snowden remains exiled in Russia.
A spokeswoman for government lawyers in New York declined to
comment Thursday.
The ACLU did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
The court's ruling sharpens the focus on the ongoing
congressional debate about whether to end NSA's collection of phone records as
part of a Patriot Act reauthorization. The provisions that authorize the phone
records program are among those that expire June 1.
Republicans and Democrats in the House have agreed on a bill
to end the government's bulk collection of the records, but Senate leaders are
backing a competing measure that would maintain the status quo. One of the
sponsors, intelligence committee chairman Richard Burr, has said he is open to
a compromise, however.
The divisions on the issue don't run neatly along partisan
lines. Libertarian-leaning Republicans have joined many Democrats in arguing
that a secret intelligence agency should not be storing the records of every
American phone call, even if the data is only examined under limited
circumstances. Some Democrats and Republicans assert that the program is needed
now more than ever, given the efforts by the Islamic State group to inspire
extremists to attack inside the U.S.
The House Judiciary Committee last month overwhelmingly
passed the latest version of a bill known as the USA Freedom Act. The measure
seeks to codify President Barack Obama's proposal to end the NSA's collection
and storage of the phone records. Instead, it would allow the agency to request
records held by telephone companies under a court order in terrorism
investigations.
Under that proposal, the NSA might end up with access to
even more data. As it stands, the program doesn't collect data on most mobile
calls, but under a new arrangement, the NSA could request mobile records as
needed from phone companies.
The 2nd Circuit noted that telephone metadata includes a
call's length, the phone number from which it was made and the phone number
called.
Opponents of the program say the information can enable the
government to learn, for instance, whether someone has called a domestic
violence, rape or suicide hotline or whether someone has reported a crime. They
say it can also reveal civil, political or religious affiliations, an
individual's social status and whether the person is involved in an intimate
relationship.
From the Court’s Opinion:
CONCLUSION
This case serves as an
example of the increasing complexity of balancing the paramount interest in protecting the security
of our nation – a job in which, as the President has stated, “actions are second‐guessed, success is unreported, and
failure can be catastrophic,” Remarks by the President on Review of Signals Intelligence
– with the privacy interests of its citizens in a world where surveillance capabilities
are vast and where it is difficult if not impossible to avoid exposing a wealth of information about oneself
to those surveillance mechanisms. Reconciling the clash of these values requires
productive contribution from all three branches of government, each of which is
uniquely suited to the task in its own way.
For the foregoing reasons,
we conclude that the district court erred in ruling that § 215 authorizes the telephone
metadata collection program, and instead hold that the telephone metadata program
exceeds the scope of what Congress has authorized and therefore violates § 215.
Accordingly, we VACATE the district court’s judgment dismissing the complaint and
REMAND the case to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this
opinion.