Exemption 1

Federal appellate judges on Thursday examined whether the executive branch gets the last word in classifying documents under the Freedom of Information Act's national security exemption.

Government attorneys confirmed on Tuesday that federal courts have the right under the federal Freedom of Information Act to review agency decisions to classify documents when invoking the law's national security exemption.

The U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion for summary judgment Wednesday in a federal Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, opposing the release of documents regarding the CIA's use of “targeted killings.”

A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that the government may withhold certain records relating to the Central Intelligence Agency’s use of enhanced interrogation techniques – including waterboarding – from public disclosure under the federal Freedom of Information Act.

A federal judge ruled Thursday that the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI may keep classified a report to Congress about foreign intelligence gathering under the PATRIOT Act.

A federal judge in Washington, D.C. has denied a request to order the U.S. government to publicly release photographs and video under the federal Freedom of Information Act of the U.S. military raid that killed Osama bin Laden last May.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg accepted the CIA’s assertion that release of any photos and video of the body of Osama bin Laden – former leader al-Qaeda – would pose a major threat to national security, and that he would not overturn the agency’s decision to classify the records.

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. ruled yesterday that the CIA could refuse to confirm or deny the existence of records in response to a federal Freedom of Information request – issuing what is referred to as a Glomar response – and rejected a claim that the agency had waived its right to do so.