Novalawcity

National Security Letters, Internet Privacy and the First Amendment

Internet Archive, which runs the Wayback Machine, has successfully challenged the FBI's demand that they turn over the name, address and e-mail records of one of their subscribers.  The Wayback Machine is an archive of 2 billion web pages that allows users to look at what “used to be” on the web.  The FBI sought to obtain the subscriber’s records via a national security letter (NSL), which operates as a subpoena, but does not require judicial approval.  NSLs contain gag orders that prohibit recipients from revealing even the existence of the letter.  Use of NSLs has skyrocketed since 2001, and the FBI now issues more than 30,000 each year, up from the historical figure of 300 per year.  According to a report from the Justice Department’s inspector general in March, the bureau often uses the letters improperly and sometimes illegally.  Readers may remember the case of George Christian, a Connecticut librarian who received an NSL and a gag order after someone made a terrorist threat on a computer in a Connecticut library.  Christian challenged the gag order in court.  After the Christian case, the Patriot Act was amended to largely exempt libraries from national security letters.

A New York federal judge held that the original provision in the Patriot Act violated the First Amendment right of free speech.  The same New York judge struck down the successor version as well. The revised Act sought to avoid the constitutional difficulties of the original by requiring that the FBI certify in each case that disclosure might harm national security, criminal investigations, diplomacy or people’s safety.  In the Act as revised, judicial review was provided for, but under extremely deferential standards.  The New York judge held that not only the First Amendment but also the principle of separation of powers was violated by the revised Act.

In the Internet Archive case, the FBI agreed to settle and allow public discussion of the case.  An attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which helped represent the Internet Archive, speculates that the FBI did so out of a desire to avoid further negative precedent. 

Hat tip to Law.com.

Will We Need Passports to Drive North on 95?

The North Lauderdale City Commission wants to divide Florida into two states - North Florida and South Florida.  See why here.

Remember 1984? Of Course Not

Nova's Law Library and Technology Center was a signatory on a letter to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), protesting the decision not to preserve a digital snapshot of public federal websites as they will appear at the end of the Bush administration.  Such snapshots, or harvests, were conducted at the end of the Clinton administration and also at the end of the first Bush term in 2004.  In an internal memo to federal agencies, the NARA claimed that archives in the private sector would provide an adequate history of federal agency websites and that NARA's efforts were better expended elsewhere.

Nova's Law Library and Technology Center joined an eclectic list of signatories, including the
American Conservative Defense Alliance, the Association of Research Libraries, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of  the Press, in signing a letter authored by OpenTheGovernment.org.  The letter points out that the government websites are public records, and that the work of private archivists, while laudatory, cannot be counted on to remain available without restrictions in perpetuity.  The websites are clearly of great historical importance, and thus should be maintained by an agency that is accountable to the public. 

It's RSS Day!

RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a type of web technology that makes it easy to keep up with regularly updated blogs and websites, including nearly all news sites, and to set up customized news alert with Google news or similar sites.  Right now, it may be the best current awareness tool there is. 

Instead of having to visit all the websites you follow, RSS feeds send updates from all of the websites you select to one place.  This is a great time saver and literally allows you to read or scan more in less time once you've got it set up.  You don't have to be a techie to understand or use it. Popular RSS readers like Bloglines and Google Reader are easy to set up and use.

Today is RSS awareness day.  To learn more about how it works and to see how the readers work, check out the brief overview at rssday.org.

When I use a word...it means just what I choose it to mean

Nova Southeastern School of Law Professor Joel Mintz organized the registering of a highly critical response by professors from law schools across the country to the EPA's plan for how it will re-open agency libraries.  The professors decried the lack of specificity in EPA's definition of "core materials" to be restored, the absence of any plans to digitize the EPA's collection and the necessity to make appointments to visit parts of the collection. 

Mintz expressed doubt that the EPA intended to proceed with the re-opening, which was mandated by Congress in the wake of the controversial closings,  before the end of the fiscal year. The professors point out in a letter addressed to ranking Democrats the lack of a firm commitment to fully restore suspended services.  Professor Mintz was joined in signing the letter by Nova Law's Assistant Professor Timothy Arcaro, Associate Professor Richard J. Grosso and Professor Emeritus Joseph F. Smith.  Other signers included professors from law schools nationwide, including Duke, Cleveland-Marshall, Seton Hall, Georgetown and Emory.

Will Marry for Health Insurance

A Kaiser Family Foundation survey taken in April found that seven percent of Americans surveyed said they or someone in their family had married within the last year in order to have access to health care benefits.  The survey points out the impact that increasingly unaffordable health insurance is having on personal finances in the United States.  Concern over health care costs topped rising food costs, but fuel costs were a problem for even more Americans.  Hat tip to HealthLawProfBlog 

Newseum To Open in D.C.

I don't know if it's the caffeine coursing through my veins, the sheer giddiness of having a comp day, or the absolute pleasure of getting to watch Washington Journal feature the Newseum on today's broadcast...but I am having a totes awesome day so far!  :)

Due to open on April 11th in D.C., the Newseum houses an extensive collection of historical media data spanning several decades.  Numerous photographs, film reels, newsprint, and miscellanous realia vividly depict a wide array of press stories regarding key events in U.S. history and their impact on its citizens.  The organization's web site offers additional information regarding visits as well as links to over 500 unedited front pages, digital galleries of rare archival materials, and even a virtual tour.  Note: Admission to the Newseum is FREE on Opening Day!

Props go to Newseum President Peter S. Pritchard for granting Washington Journal viewers a behind-the-scene-sneak-peak tour of this incredible tribute to journalism and its role in chronicling the events of our nation's history.

Innocence Week @ NSU Law

NSU Law is marking Innocence Week in several ways. (If you're local, you've probably noticed the flyers featuring the 215 and counting exonerated around the Law Center.)

Last night, Alan Crotzer, who was wrongfully convicted and incarcerated for 24 years, 6 months, 13 days and four hours, addressed the NSU Law community.  If you missed the event or want to read about it, check out the Miami Herald article.  You can also catch an excerpt from Crotzer's talk at Local 10, where it was the lead story on last night's local news.

The Florida Senate is currently considering a bill that would provide Crotzer and others like him with compensation, including college tuition credits.  If you'd like to voice your support for the bill, find your senator here.

The Great Firewall of China

The internet that foreign visitors will encounter at the Summer Olympics is not the one that the Chinese use.  Article

What Does the Public Want from Elected Officials?

Find out here!