A federal court judge has handed a partial victory to 13 Muslim Americans who are challenging the government’s secret no fly list, reports Reuters.
The thirteen US citizens each learned they were included on the list when they showed up to the airport and told they could not fly. They each denied they have any links to terrorism and sued the government charging that there was no real avenue for appeal.
The judge today ruled they have a constitutionally protected liberty interest in traveling internationally by air, but she did not rule on whether their constitutional rights were violated.
The government had no comment, but the ACLU which filed the suit in 2010 is elated.
“For the first time, a federal court has recognized that when the government bans Americans from flying and smears them as suspected terrorists, it deprives them of constitutionally protected liberties, and they must have a fair process to clear their names,” ACLU attorney Nusrat Choudhury said in a statement.
The judge is expected to issue her ruling later this fall.
You can read more about the no fly list in Reuters.
