Last week a federal judge in New Jersey dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Center for Constitutional Rights and Muslim Advocates challenging the New York City Police Department’s spying on the Muslim community in New Jersey. Judge William J. Martini dismissed the case, Hassan v. City of New York, by finding that the alleged injuries—such as people avoiding the businesses and mosques under surveillance—did not count as “objective harm” caused by the spying. He also blamed the free press for the misconduct of the police, holding that even if there were any real injuries that they were the fault of the media for revealing the existence of the secret program. Judge Martini’s opinion could also be read to endorse dragnet surveillance targeted at the entire Muslim community based on a desire to locate potential terrorists. CAIR-Philadelphia strongly disagrees with this decision, and is currently researching ways to best support the efforts to overturn the judge’s ruling.
From the Legal Department: A Bad Decision
