Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Religion & Law Blogs -> Religion Clause

Religion & Law

: Religion Clause

Jewish Army Employee Sues To Challenge Assertion of State Secrets Privilege

By Howard M. Friedman

Another lawsuit has been filed in the long-running dispute between U.S. Army employee David Tenenbaum and the Department of Defense. In a series of events beginning in 1997, Tenenbaum, an Orthodox Jew, lost his access to classified information and had his security clearance revoked on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations that he was spying for the state of Israel. The government never found sufficient evidence to prosecute Tenenbaum, and a DOD Inspector General's Report issued last year concluded that "Tenenbaum was subjected to unusual and unwelcome scrutiny because of his faith and ethnic background...." (See prior posting). Tenenbaum had attempted previously to bring suit over his treatment, but one of the two major cases he filed was dismissed after defendants claimed that they would be required to disclose state secrets in order to defend themselves. (Tenenbaum v. Simonini, 6th Cir., 2004).

In a suit filed yesterday in a Michigan federal district court, Tenenbaum asserts that he was deprived of his constitutional right to full and fair access to the courts by defendants' false assertion, through sealed affidavits, of the state secrets privilege. The complaint (full text) in Tenenbaum v. U.S. Department of Defense, (ED MI, filed 2/19/2009) alleges that defendants asserted the state secrets privilege "with knowledge and/or in reckless disregard of the fact that no state secrets existed in the Action because there was never any evidence against Tenenbaum." Today's International Herald Tribune reports on the filing of the case.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on February 20, 2009 (boomark / email).