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ACLU Sues DOJ to See 'Targeted Killing' Legal Justification Memos

By Molly McDonough

February 3, 2012, 5:48 pm CST

The American Civil Liberties Union has sued to compel the Justice Department release of memos disclosing the legal justification for strikes that have killed U.S. citizens abroad.

A lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court Wednesday follows the killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-Yemeni citizen and suspected al-Qaida militant who was killed in a drone strike last September, Reuters reports.

Reuters reports that American militants like al-Awlaki and American Samir Khan, who was also killed in the drone attack, are placed on a kill or capture list by a secretive panel of senior U.S. government officials. There are no public records of the panel’s operations.

The ACLU filed suit after requests under the Freedom of Information Act were denied. A similar suit was filed in December by the New York Times.

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WAR POWERS

• • Constitutional Dilemma: The Power to Declare War Is Deeply Rooted in American History by Richard Brust
• • War Powers Belong to the President by John Yoo
• • Only Congress Can Declare War by Louis Fisher

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TARGETED KILLINGS

• • Uneasy Targets: How Justifying the Killing of Terrorists Has Become a Major Policy Debate by Richard Brust
• • Targeted Killing Is Lawful If Conducted in Accordance with the Rule of Law by Amos N. Guiora and Monica Hakimi

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CYBERWARFARE

• • Cyberattacks: Computer Warfare Looms as Next Big Conflict in International Law by Richard Brust
• • What Is the Role of Lawyers in Cyberwarfare? by Stewart A. Baker and Charles J. Dunlap Jr.

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COERCED INTERROGATIONS

• • Probing Questions: Experts Debate the Need to Create Exceptions to Rules on Coerced Confessions by Richard Brust
• • Should We Create Exceptions to Rules Regarding Coerced Interrogation of Terrorism Suspects? by Norman Abrams and Christopher Slobogin

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DOMESTIC TERRORISM

• • Insider Threats: Experts Try to Balance the Constitution with Law Enforcement to Find Terrorists by Richard Brust
• • The Threat from Within: What Is the Scope of Homegrown Terrorism? by Gordon Lederman and Kate Martin

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THIRD-PARTY DOCTRINE

• • Crashing the Third Party: Experts Weigh How Far the Government Can Go in Reading Your Email by Richard Brust
• • The Data Question: Should the Third-Party Records Doctrine Be Revisited? by Orin Kerr and Greg Nojeim

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NATIONAL SECURITY LETTERS

• • Letters of the Law: National Security Letters Help the FBI Stamp Out Terrorism But Some Disapprove by Richard Brust
• • National Security Letters: Building Blocks for Investigations or Intrusive Tools? Michael German and Michelle Richardson, and Valerie Caproni and Steven Siegel

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DETENTION POLICY

• • Detention Dilemma: As D.C. Circuit Considers Guantanamo Inmates, Can Judicial Review Harm Military? by Richard Brust
• • Detention Policies: What Role for Judicial Review? by Stephen I. Vladeck and Greg Jacob