Hedges v. Obama
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
724 F.3d 170 (2013)
- Written by Craig Conway, LLM
Facts
Christopher Hedges, an American journalist; other domestic and foreign journalists; and activists (plaintiffs) filed suit in federal district court against President Barack Obama and others in his administration (defendants), challenging the legality of § 1021(b)(2) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (NDAA). The law permitted the federal government to indefinitely detain individuals suspected of substantially supporting terrorist organizations. The plaintiffs argued that the NDAA could be interpreted to label journalists and political activists as covered persons subject to the law if they interviewed suspected terrorists or supported outspoken critics of the federal government’s position on combating terrorism. The district court agreed and issued a permanent injunction blocking the indefinite-detention powers of the NDAA. The court of appeals stayed the injunction pending an appeal by the defendants.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Kaplan, J.)
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