US judge sees no illegality in NSA spying.
District Judge William Pauley rejected a challenge filed by the American Civil Liberties Union to the NSA program, whose existence was first revealed by former agency contractor Edward Snowden. Pauley ruled Friday in Manhattan that there is no evidence that the government used so-called "metadata" from phone calls for any reason other than investigating and preventing terrorist attacks.
By Jonathan Stempel
NEW YORK, Dec 27 (Reuters) - A US judge has ruled that the large-scale collection of telephone data by the US National Security Agency (NSA) is legal and does not violate the privacy rights of US citizens.
District Judge William Pauley rejected a challenge filed by the American Civil Liberties Union to the NSA program, the existence of which was first revealed by former agency contractor Edward Snowden.
Pauley ruled in Manhattan on Friday that there is no evidence that the government used so-called "metadata" from phone calls for any reason other than investigating and preventing terrorist attacks.
Pauley pointed out that the program "absorbs information on virtually every call to, from, or within the United States," but said that its legality under the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution "ultimately comes down to a question of reasonableness."
The judge rejected a motion from the American Civil Liberties Union seeking an injunction and granted the government's request to drop the case. The organization said it was "extremely disappointed" and will appeal.
The White House said it would not comment on the matter, and a Justice Department spokesperson said the agency is satisfied with the judge's 54-page decision.
Pauley's decision differs from that adopted on December 16 by District Judge Richard Leon in Washington, who stated that the program was likely unconstitutional. Leon ordered the government to stop collecting data on the two people who had filed a lawsuit in this case.
The NSA program is also the target of a lawsuit by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a private data collection group. Any disagreements among federal judges regarding the constitutionality of the NSA's activities may ultimately have to be resolved by the Supreme Court.
"This straightforward tool only works because it collects everything," Pauley wrote. "Technology has allowed Al Qaeda to operate in a decentralized manner and remotely plan international terrorist attacks. The bulk of the phone call metadata collected by the program represents a government counterattack."
In denying the American Civil Liberties Union's motion, Pauley stated that the public interest leans "firmly" toward the government, whose desire to combat terrorism is "an urgent objective of the highest order."
US President Barack Obama has defended the surveillance program, but has indicated he intends to consider restrictions, including whether telephone companies or other parties should be given control over metadata. Intelligence officials say this could become costly and slow down investigations.
A VITAL WEAPON?
Snowden's leaks exposed in detail the extent of US electronic surveillance and triggered a debate about the leeway the government might be allowed in protecting Americans against terrorism.
Snowden is now in Russia, under temporary asylum.
Larry Klayman, a conservative activist who works in the legal field and brought the case to Judge Leon, called Pauley's sentence "an outrageous decision that ignores the legitimate fears of the American people and effectively endorses a police state."
Pauley was nominated for the position by former President Bill Clinton. Leon was nominated by former President George W. Bush.
(Additional reporting by Mark Hosenball, Ros Krasny and Nate Raymond)