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Terrorism watch list must be turned over to court

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  1. Court Access
A federal magistrate judge recently ruled that the names of suspected terrorists tracked by the Department of Homeland Security and…

A federal magistrate judge recently ruled that the names of suspected terrorists tracked by the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI must be turned over to the court, which may decide whether they should remain classified.

The 25-page opinion by Judge Sidney Schenkier was issued April 16 and made public last week.

The judge disagreed with the government’s argument that releasing the names of American citizens on the terrorism watch list could jeopardize state secrets.

The opinion stems from a 2005 lawsuit where Chicago businessman Akif Rahman and nine other people filed a complaint alleging several instances of unreasonable confinement. Rahman and the other plaintiffs will now know whether they are on that list.

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