Verizon hoists Free Speech flag
p2pnet.net news:- Here’s an interesting twist: Verizon, currently being sued over its alleged disclosure of customer phone records to the NSA, wants the consolidated case against it thrown out ——
—- on free speech grounds.
“Based on plaintiffs’ own allegations, defendants’ right to communicate such information to the government is fully protected by the Free Speech and Petition Clauses of the First Amendment,” argue Verizon’s lawyers, says Ars Technica,
The lawsuit is, “one of five joint suits against the nation’s largest telecoms for their alleged participation in massive government spying programs, including the one that listened in without warrants on certain international phone calls of Americans,” said a Wired post in the same vein three days earlier, stating, “Verizon additionally argues that the Electronic Communications Protection Act or ECPA which largely prohibits telecoms from revealing sensitive customer data without legal process, is unconstitutional.”
Says Ars Technica:
Essentially, the argument is that turning over truthful information to the government is free speech, and the EFF and ACLU can’t do anything about it. In fact, Verizon basically argues that the entire lawsuit is a giant SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) suit, and that the case is an attempt to deter the company from exercising its First Amendment right to turn over customer calling information to government security services.
“Communicating facts to the government is protected petitioning activity,” says the response, even when the communication of those facts would normally be illegal or would violate a company’s owner promises to its customers. Verizon argues that, if the EFF and other groups have concerns about customer call records, the only proper remedy “is to impose restrictions on the government, not on the speaker’s right to communicate.”
And if that doesn’t work, the Bush administration, “is already preparing to ask Congress for retroactive immunity for all telecommunications companies that assisted the government after September 11, 2001,” says Ars technica, adding:
“The government is also fighting hard in court on behalf of the phone companies, filing repeated briefs which claim that ’state secrets’ trump even the legality of the alleged security programs.”
The Wired story goes on to quote the why’s and the wherefores, to wit:
The gravamen of plaintiffs records claims is that defendants allegedly communicated information about them to the government namely, that a call was placed from a certain telephone number to another number. Communicating such factual information to the government would be speech that is fully protected by the First Amendment.
When the country is engaged in an armed conflict with foreign enemies, that right applies to communicating information that may be useful in defending the country from expected attacks. Based on plaintiffs own allegations, defendants right to communicate such information to the government is fully protected by the Free Speech and Petition Clauses of the First Amendment, and is a privilege and immunity that arises directly under the federal Constitution. Any construction of ECPA that purported to prohibit such communications, and to subject defendants to monetary liability for engaging in the communications alleged, would violate these constitutional rights.
A complete prohibition on truthful speech to the government about information lawfully acquired and involving political speech and speech on matters of public concern would violate the First Amendment on numerous grounds, as discussed below. There are two overarching flaws. First, an outright prohibition on truthful speech about information lawfully acquired is anathema to the First Amendment. Second, a ban on such speech is not narrowly tailored to achieve the objective of preventing the governments misuse of customer call records. When such concerns exist, the only proper remedy, consistent with the First Amendment, is to impose restrictions on the government, not on the speakers right to communicate.
Click here for the ‘Memorandum in support of Verizon’s motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s Master Consolidated Complaint’
Also See:
Ars Technica – Verizon says phone record disclosure is protected free speech, May 7, 2007
Wired – Verizon: Suing Us For Turning Over Customer Call Records Violates Our Free Speech Rights, May 7, 2007
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Tired of being treated like a criminal? They depend on you, not the other way around. Don’t buy their ‘product’. Do bug your local politicians. Use emails, snail-mail, phone calls, faxes, IM, stop them in the street, blog. And if you’re into organizing, organize petitions, organize demonstrations and then turn up on your local political rep’s doorstep, making sure you’ve contacted your local tv/radio station/newspaper in advance. Don’t just complain. Do something!
May 8th, 2007 at 1:17 pm
http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.billofrights.html#amendmenti
You may have to copy and paste the link into your browser for it to get you to where you need to be. From there, you can navigate to the rest of the Constitution using links at the bottom of that page.
See for yourselves what The United States of America Constitution says and make up your own minds about what is happening to this once great Country and how it’s affecting the rest of the world in general.
May 8th, 2007 at 6:54 pm
There’s a good bit of difference between having private data that can affect the security and well being of employment, travel, and national watch lists being given over to the government on private individuals without oversite and free speech, and the concept of free speech.
As a gatherer of private data due to their position in regards to their business and turning that same data over without security oversight is the same as spying. In times of war spying is considered a death penalty offense. It’s a shame the same can’t be done to a corporation. As I understand it by the presidents own words, we are in a time of war.
There is a phrase within the constitution that says “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. All three are put at jeopardy by the release of such data to the government. There is also a reason for checks and balances and that is to prevent any arm of the government from overtaking its granted powers.
The present administration has been after the piece by piece dismantling of those checks. As the dems begin to make headway at looking at where those checks and balances have been evaded or outright broken, more and more of those surrounding the president seem to be in ever deeper hot water. While the reigns of power rested in the Republican side, none of these investigations were possible as they were stymied at every turn. Nor that isn’t possible and we are hearing and seeing more of these dirty deals coming to light. The power of government can be a corrupter and it sure seems to look as if that has been working overtime in the present administration.
*Third attempt at validation*