An outspoken supporter of WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning can continue his lawsuit against the federal government over a border search-and-seizure conducted in 2010 after his return to the U.S. from a Mexico vacation, as a federal court ruled Wednesday that his constitutional rights may have been violated.
A federal judge denied the government’s motion to dismiss the case brought by David Maurice House, an MIT researcher, finding that the government’s search-and-seizure of his electronics may have violated his right to free speech – even if agents have the right to search travelers at the border for no reason.
“Although the agents may not need to have any particularized suspicion for the initial search and seizure at the border for the purpose of the Fourth Amendment analysis, it does
not necessarily follow that the agents, as is alleged in the complaint, may seize personal electronic devices containing expressive materials, target someone for their political association and seize his electronic devices and review the information pertinent to that association and its members and supporters simply because the initial search occurred at the border,” U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper wrote.
(via: Wired Politically Motivated Border Searches Could Be Unconstitutional, Judge Rules | Threat Level | Wired.com)