NACDL - United States v. Moalin

United States v. Moalin

Brief of Amici Curiae Brennan Center for Justice, American Library Association, Electronic Privacy Information Center, Freedom to Read Foundation, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Ninth Circuit Federal and Community Defenders, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in Support of Defendant-Appellant and Reversal.

United States v. Moalin

Brief Details

Case No.: 13-50572
Brief Filed: November 05, 2015
Jurisdiction: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

Key Topics in the Brief

First Amendment | Fourth Amendment | Third Party Doctrine | Mass Collection of Communications | Surveillance

Briefs

United-States-v-Moalin-Amicus.PDF

Prior Decision

On appeal from the U.S. Dist. Ct., S.D. Cal., No. 10-cr-4246, decision below 2013 WL 6079518 (Nov. 18, 2013).

Argument(s)

The government is systematically collecting records of phone calls, text messages, e-mails, and other digital communications. Communications metadata is Fourth Amendment "Papers." Communications metadata is revealing, even in limited quantities. Metadata is especially revealing in aggregate. The third-party doctrine is ill-suited to the digital age. The "assumption of risk" equation has changes. The distinction between content and metadata is not sound.