Says The List Denies Due Process To Those Listed

A U.S District Judge has ruled that the Federal Government's no-fly list violates the U.S. constitution.

The ruling from U.S. District Judge Anna Brown in Oregon found that those placed on the list are denied their due process of law. In the 65-page ruling, Brown said international travel "is not a mere convenience or luxury in this modern world" and rejected the government's position that the no-fly list does not infringe on liberties because there are other ways for those on the list to reach their destinations.

NPR and the Associated Press report that the suit was originally filed in 2010 by 13 people who were on the list. It eventually worked its way up to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of appeals, which handed the case back to Brown in the U.S. district court. Brown said in her ruling that inclusion on the list "constitutes a significant deprivation of their liberty interests in international travel."

Brown said the government should give those on the list at least a hint of what classified information led to their being placed on the list so that they can respond to the charges. Currently, those on the list have no "meaningful mechanism ... to correct erroneous information in the government's terrorism database," Brown wrote in the ruling.

FMI: Full Ruling