2nd Circuit Denies ACLU’s Motion for Preliminary Injunction in Clapper, NSA Case
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday denied a motion for a preliminary injunction brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, New York Civil Liberties Union and the New York Civil Liberties Union Foundation.…
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The groups asked the 2nd Circuit to bar the government from collecting call records under the phone metadata program, to require the government to quarantine call records already collected under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, and to prohibit the government from querying metadata obtained through the program using any phone number or other identifier associated with them. The opinion said that the “appellants’ claims are not moot at this time, we decline to disturb the decision by Congress to provide for a 180-day transition period to put an orderly end to the telephone metadata program.” The court remanded the case, ACLU v. Clapper to district court. Congress’ Nov. 29 shut-off deadline “should be respected” since it “balanced privacy and national security by providing for a 180-day transition period” in the USA Freedom Act, said Judge Gerard Lynch in the 2nd Circuit’s ruling. “Its intent in passing the Freedom Act was clear.”