Court: Feds May Inspect NY Times Records

[Rose Siding]

NEW YORK — An appeals court on Tuesday overturned a judge's ruling that had protected New York Times phone records from being inspected by federal prosecutors investigating leaked information about a terrorism fundraising probe.

By a 2-1 vote, a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held that prosecutors had a valid interest in seeing who contacted Times reporters.

"We see no danger to a free press in so holding," Judge Ralph K. Winter wrote for the majority.

The case involved stories written in 2001 by Times reporters Judith Miller and Philip Shenon that revealed that the government planned to freeze the assets of the Global Relief Foundation, an Islamic charity accused of funding terrorism, as well as those of another Islamic charity, the Holy Land Foundation.

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald then opened a grand jury probe into the source of the newspaper reports, claiming the reporters' phone calls to the charities seeking comment had tipped them off about the investigation.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,206588,00.html

[girl gone mad]

1. It will be interesting to see..

who was on the other end, directing Judy to alert these charities.

[villager]

2. so this goes to Fitzpatrick's investigation, not the recent demagoguing

about the so-called "leaks," used by the fascist cabal to further intimidate the press...

[LiberalHeart]

3. Kick

[DoYouEverWonder]

4. Nice to see this investigation is still alive

Tipping off your friends that the FBI are going to raid them should be grounds for sending Little Ms. Run Amok back to jail.

[rodeodance]

5. i think this opens the door to all reporters having to reveal their source

.....When the paper declined to identify its sources, Fitzgerald threatened to subpoena Times billing records from the phone company. The newspaper then filed a lawsuit seeking to block any such effort.

[gratuitous]

6. So there's a valid interest in who talked to the Times

But apparently there is no valid interest in finding out who our public servant Dick Cheney was meeting with back in 2001 for his little Energy Task Force - who was there, what they discussed, and what actions may have flowed from those meetings. Nope, no valid interest there! After all, the Times is a newspaper, a private company; the Vice President is a public servant not answerable to the public.

[deminks]

7. Another post I wish I could recommend more than once.

I think there may be more than aspens turning on this one. Who in the WH tipped her off? Why exactly did she tip off the charities? Just to get their reaction? Paaaleeeze. Follow the money, indeed. When her sources are committing a crime by giving her information, there is no effing protection.

[LiberalHeart]

9. I agree with you totally....

I wish the headline on this were more descriptive to alert more DUers.

[MysteryToMyself]

8. That is a protection

That is one of those protections so they can tell the truth to the public. The NY Times is being persecuted by the lapdog media and Bushites. They gotta appeal that ruling.:dilemma:

[orleans]

10. US Wins Appeal To Seek New York Times Phone Records

"By Christine Kearney

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. government won an appeal on Tuesday allowing it to seek phone records of New York Times reporters investigating government probes into Islamic charities shortly before the September 11 attacks.

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the government, which wants to know the identity of government sources who might have given information to two New York Times reporters, including former reporter Judith Miller.

The decision is the latest episode in the free speech battle that has pitted U.S. prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald against the Times and Miller. "

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID=2006-08-01T224007Z_01_N01113120_RTRUKOC_0_US-MEDIA-LEAK.xml&WTmodLoc=Home-C5-politicsNews-2

[orleans]

11. in a related piece

"The case involved stories written in 2001 by Times reporters Judith Miller and Philip Shenon that revealed the government's plans to freeze the assets of two Islamic charities, the Holy Land Foundation and the Global Relief Foundation.

Prosecutors claimed the reporters' phone calls to the charities seeking comment had tipped the organizations off about the government investigation."

http://www.nola.com/newsflash/topstories/index.ssf?/base/national-68/1154457880240340.xml&storylist=topstories

[mikelgb]

12. R.I.P Grey Lady n/t

[JanusAscending]

13. This is very encouraging, to know that Fitz hasn't given up

on the case!! In fact he's digging even deeper and deeper,as deep as pre- 9/11. I'd be VERY WORRIED if I worked in the White House!! Ya have to read the whole article to get the big picture!:bounce: kick/rec!!

[hang a left]

15. THis is a different case than Plame n/t

[JanusAscending]

16. I think you are wrong, IMO

From the article I read on Yahoo news, it WAS linked to Plame case, via Judith Miller!!

[hang a left]

19. It is just another case that Fitz wrangled with Miller.

Fitz and Miller had a history before Plame. It is one of the reasons that her attorneys limited the scope of the questions that Fitz could ask. She didn't want to get in front of the Plame GJ and get asked about this case.

[dooner]

14. Fitzgerald going for treason?

What's Fitz after?

"The case involved stories written in 2001 by Times reporters Judith Miller and Philip Shenon that revealed the government's plans to freeze the assets of two Islamic charities, the Holy Land Foundation and the Global Relief Foundation.

Prosecutors claimed the reporters' phone calls to the charities seeking comment had tipped the organizations off about the government investigation.

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald asked the Times for information about the source of the reports in 2002, then threatened to subpoena phone company billing records in 2004.

Forbes
http://www.forbes.com/technology/feeds/ap/2006/08/01/ap2920433.html

[madrchsod]

23. a solid case of obstruction of justice

to understand fitzgerald one has to study his tatics in the ryan trial in illinois. it`s been a pleasure to watch him here in ilinois destroy the ryan machine

[Wiley50]

17. Why don't they just get them from the NSA

like they do the rest of us?

sarcasm/off

[orleans]

20. ha! no shit. n/t

[lonestarnot]

18. heh heh heh

and even going about it legally! Woop n halla!

[leveymg]

21. NYT Must Surrender Reporters' Phone Data (Judy Miller - terror $ case)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/01/AR2006080101207.html?nav=hcmodule
N.Y. Times Must Surrender Reporters' Phone Data
Appellate Panel Rejects First Amendment Claim in Federal Grand Jury Probe

By Charles Lane
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 2, 2006; Page A16

The New York Times may not withhold reporters' phone records from a federal grand jury investigating an alleged leak of a pending government raid on two Islamic charities suspected of supporting terrorism, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday. A three-judge panel of the New York-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ruled 2 to 1 that the Times has no First Amendment or other legal right to refuse a demand for the records from the grand jury in Chicago, which was empaneled by U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald.

The government's interest in rooting out a possible crime outweighs the newspaper's interest in protecting reporters' sources, the court concluded. "The government has a compelling interest in maintaining the secrecy of imminent asset freezes or searches lest the targets be informed and spirit away those assets or incriminating evidence," Judge Ralph K. Winter Jr. wrote. "At stake in the present investigation, therefore, is not only the important principle of secrecy regarding imminent law enforcement actions but also a set of facts -- informing the targets of those impending actions -- that may constitute a serious obstruction of justice."

SNIP

Last year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ordered Judith Miller and other reporters to supply a grand jury empaneled by Fitzgerald, acting as a Justice Department special counsel, with names of sources in the Valerie Plame CIA leak investigation.

Though the legal issues and the cast of characters are similar, this case is separate from the case of the Plame leak. It arises from Fitzgerald's post-Sept. 11, 2001, investigation of possible links between al-Qaeda and two U.S.-based Islamic charities, the Holy Land Foundation and the Global Relief Fund.

In December 2001, Times reporters Miller and Philip Shenon learned of a pending government move to freeze the two groups' assets. They called the charities for comment shortly before FBI agents raided their offices.
Fitzgerald argued that the Miller and Shenon calls tipped off the charities, increasing the risk to agents and encouraging destruction of evidence. The Times denied this. Fitzgerald is trying to find out if any government officials illegally leaked information to the reporters.

SNIP

So, who are these unnamed "government officials" who Fitzgerald is investigating for tipping off Judy to the fact that the FBI was looking into the financial links between al-Qaeda and these Grover Norquist Islamic charities, and why did Judy drop a dime and tell them the Feds were on the way?

[leveymg]

24. So, who are these unnamed "government officials" who leaked to Judy?

Is Scooter going to face a whole new set of charges? What about his bosses? Did they authorize this leak, also?

This story needs to be Frontpaged with a better title.

[leveymg]

25. This story should be read in conjunction with the 9/11 Commission story

See, http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2429785

[madrchsod]

22. he`s been wanting these two people ever since he lost this case.

someone in the whitehouse phoned them and he wants to know who...but this is going to the supremes and they are screwed either way they rule. it just keeps getting better and better and never ever underestimate fitzgerald