Today our firm filed an amicus brief in support of certain Muslims in Los Angeles who were surveilled electronically and otherwise by the FBI and a confidential informant. The FBI has asserted the state secrets doctrine to seek dismissal of most claims, including a FISA claim under which the district court could conduct an ex parte in camera review of the surveillance to determine if there were Fourth Amendment violations by the FBI. We argue that the state secrets act does not override the FISA provision authorizing a civil action and court review. We also explain the context of this case as the several ways courts have made it virtually impossible to obtain judicial review of illegal surveillance. Last, we explain the long history of the FBI being involved in monitoring political activists, and why the FBI should not be considered a trustworthy agency.
