VIDEO: Gagged for 6 Years, Nick Merrill Speaks Out on Landmark Court Struggle Against FBI’s National Security Letters
Submitted by admin on Thu, 08/12/2010 - 12:09pm
For six years, the FBI has barred a New York man from revealing that the agency had ordered him to hand over personal information about clients of his internet start-up. Finally allowed to speak, Nick Merrill joins us in his first broadcast interview to talk about how he challenged the FBI’s use of national security letters.
In 2004, the ACLU filed a lawsuit challenging the FBI's authority to demand records through NSLs and to gag NSL recipients. The suit — the first of its kind — was brought on behalf of a John Doe Internet Service Provider that had been served with an NSL and had been prohibited from disclosing — to anyone — that the FBI had demanded records. Because of the gag order, the lawsuit was initially filed under seal. More than three years ago, the FBI abandoned its demand for records. It wasn't until mid 2010 - nearly 6 and a half years later - that I was finally partially released from the gag.. Not completely - but at least enough to be identified publicly as the plaintiff in the case...
http://www.aclu.org/national-security/doe-v-holder