Judge Rules Against the U.S. in Patriot Act Case

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 7:07 p.m. ET

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) -- A federal judge lifted a gag order Friday that shielded the identity of librarians who received an FBI demand for records about library patrons under the Patriot Act.

U.S. District Court Judge Janet Hall ruled in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union, which argued that the gag order prevented their client from participating in a debate over whether Congress should reauthorize the Patriot Act.

''It's fabulous,'' said ACLU Associate Legal Director Ann Beeson. ''Clearly the judge recognized it was profoundly undemocratic to gag a librarian from participating in the Patriot Act debate.''

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''The government may intend the non-disclosure provision to serve some purpose other than the suppression of speech,'' Hall wrote. ''Nevertheless, it has the practical effect of silencing individuals with a constitutionally protected interest in speech and whose voices are particularly important in an ongoing national debate about the intrusion of governmental authority into individual lives.''

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Patriot-Act-Records.html?hp&ex=1126324800&en=8b3bbdba7648dc64&ei=5094&partner=homepage