Judge Doesn't Care Much For DOJ's Boilerplate, Refuses To Grant One Year Gag Order

from the no,-you-shut-up dept

Last week, the DOJ changed its policy on gag orders. In the past, the DOJ loved attaching indefinite gag orders to nearly everything it submitted to service providers. This prompted some backlash in the form of courtroom challenges. It appears the DOJ has decided to choose its battles more carefully. Gag orders can still accompany warrants and subpoenas, but they now have a more definitive end date.

Barring exceptional circumstances, prosecutors filing§ 2705(b) applications may only seek to delay notice for one year or less.

Naturally, the government has taken its own policy to mean it should ask for the new maximum in every case. A subpoena gag order requested by the US Attorney's Office asks for a year's worth of silence from Google. But Judge Orenstein -- one of the members of the post-Snowden "magistrates revolt" -- doesn't find the government's boilerplate persuasive. (h/t Riana Pfefferkorn) From the order [PDF]:

The government seeks an order requiring subpoena recipient Google Inc. ("Google") not to notify any person (aside from Google's counsel) of the subpoena's existence for a period of one year. Docket Entry ("DE") 1 ("Application"). For the reasons set forth below, I deny the motion without prejudice to renewal. In short, the government has not made the factual showing necessary to secure the relief it seeks, and it does not explain why non-disclosure is needed for an entire year.

Judge Orenstein then goes on to deconstruct the government's boilerplate.

First, the government continues to rely on its earlier formulation that the investigation it seeks to advance through the issuance of a subpoena "is neither public nor known to all of the targets of the investigation." That suggests that there are investigative targets who do know of the investigation's existence. If that is the case, then the risk already exists that such targets will take steps to flee, alter or destroy evidence, or otherwise impede the investigation's progress; at a minimum, I cannot infer that Google's disclosure of the subpoena's existence would create or exacerbate any such risk.

Second, the Application provides no information concerning the person about whom the government seeks to secure information from Google: I know nothing of his or her status as a witness, victim, subject, or target with respect to the investigation; nor does the record reveal whether the person has any relationship with any subject or target that might give him or her an incentive to reveal the subpoena's existence and thereby potentially impede the investigation.

Third, while the Application reports that the subject account "is believed" (by some unidentified person) to be held or used by an individual not in custody who lacks full knowledge of the investigation, it provides nothing to shed any light on the basis for that belief.

Fourth, even assuming the belief to be well grounded, it is too vague to support the finding the statute requires. The proposition that the account holder or user does not yet know "the extent of the investigation" suggests that that person does know something about it – but whether that knowledge suffices to provide the ability or motivation to take any action that would impede the investigation is impossible to discern. I assume the government's concern is genuine, and that it may well have a sufficient factual basis, but the existing record gives me no way to predict, as I must to grant the requested relief, that Google's disclosure of the subpoena will have any adverse effect on the government's investigation.

The whole order is a fun read, with Orenstein showing his displeasure with the government's automatic demand for the maximum allowable-gag order length despite providing zero factual assertions backing its claimed need for 365 days of secrecy. Orenstein also denies the government's request to have the docket sealed indefinitely, explaining this makes no sense when it's only asking for a yearlong gag order for the subpoena.

Then he cuts straight to the heart of the matter: the government would undoubtedly ask for a longer gag order (without any specific justification) if it could. But it can't. So it's chosen to ask for the maximum allowed right out of the gate.

Until very recently, when the government sought non-disclosure orders under the SCA, it would typically avoid placing any temporal limit on the scope of the proposed order – thus effectively imposing a permanent gag on the subpoena recipient where the request was granted. The instant Application, however, seeks to compel non-disclosure "for a period of one year from the date of the proposed Order." That change appears to reflect a new policy that, "[b]arring exceptional circumstances, [such] applications may only seek to delay notice for one year or less."

But while the government plainly understands that determining the duration of non-disclosure is a discretionary matter for the court, it provides no reason for seeking the maximum duration consistent with its new policy. Thus, for example, I have no information as to the anticipated length of the remainder of the investigation to which the subpoena pertains, or whether the government anticipates that any events other than the arrest or trial of any remaining targets will obviate the need for continued secrecy. In addition to hobbling the court's ability to reach a reasoned decision, that lack of information seems inconsistent with the government's own policy. As the Rosenstein Memo makes clear, "[i]n applying for a § 2705(b) order, prosecutors should tailor the application to include the available facts of the specific case and/or concerns attendant to the particular type of investigation." Id. at 2. Accordingly, should the government renew its application, I respectfully direct it to include an explanation of the need for the proposed duration of the non-disclosure order it seeks.

The government will have to fix its application before Orenstein will consider approving its gag order request. This is some very good pushback from the magistrate -- one who's often held the government's feet to the fire. The new policy is supposed to prevent automatic requests for max gag with every subpoena and warrant, but the government has interpreted it to mean placing an opening bid for one year's silence and negotiating from there. Orenstein makes it clear he won't be accepting boilerplate justifications for lengthy gag orders.

Of course, it could be this application wasn't meant to be seen by Orenstein. It almost looks like the government hoped to slide it by the New Guy on the SDNY staff: Judge Sanket Bulsara. Its gag order request [PDF] came with a canned proposed order -- one that includes a blank line for Bulsara to sign it.

Somewhere in New York, there's an US Attorney cursing the magistrate rotation.

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Filed Under: doj, gag order, james orenstein, magistrate's revolt, subpoena
Companies: google


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  1. identicon
    Jordan Chandler, 30 Oct 2017 @ 11:02am

    government lawyers

    So no government lawyers actually care about the law or justice, right? it's just about what they can get away with?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. icon
    ECA (profile), 30 Oct 2017 @ 12:08pm

    ANYONE FEEL AT WAR?

    This is seeming like a war...but with WHOM??

    There are Checks and balances that ARNT being used.
    But for SOME reason our Gov. is running around like we are under Marshal law.
    Many of our Rights are becoming Abit BURIED..

    To many things are being Swept under the rug, Hidden. And there seem to be ALLOT of laws and regulations being removed.
    Mostly consumer based laws.

    And Sections of the GOV. seem to be Closing down.
    fda/fOOD AND DRUG/aGRI are responsible for protecting our Food supplies and can only Monitor 8% per year(NOW) and ASK the corps to do THEIR OWN INSPECTIONS AND SEND IT IN..
    (notice any food recalls?, outbreaks?, there have been MANY)

    They want to make Air traffic control a Private Corp.

    The MOST fun you will ever see, is the BIDDING process in the USA..ITS SUPPOSED TO BE an open to anyone process, but for SOME reason there are PRIMARY CONTRACTORS that get paid HUGE AMOUNTS to do Stuff(look up Gov. internet sites, Failing, and how much we PAID for them) TRY to find a list of the Cellphones and Laptops we bought..AND LOST..Cant find..

    People have said the gov. needs to be Cut back, HOW FAR?
    The Gov. IS' the Number 1 Employer in this nation.. AND we put IDIOTS in charge of the agencies and DONT replace people Who need to be FIRED or retired..

    We have had chances to BALANCE our budget, Quickly and easily..Only a few years to do it..
    Then SOMEONE FINDS another WAR to wage and SPEND OUR MONEY..

    There is an OLD conspiracy..
    That Every 15-20 years we have a War to SHOW OFF OUR WEAPONS with other countries.. We pick a side and Have a balancing act, as we pick a random side and have a War..

    Im getting old enough to NOT worry to much about the Future, so I HOPE things get Fixed Soon.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Oct 2017 @ 1:39pm

    Hopefully Judge Orenstein doesn't commit suicide by shooting himself in the back of the head repeatedly and then zipping himself up in a suitcase.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Oct 2017 @ 2:51pm

    My theory is that there's a conspiracy to convince us all the idiocy in the world is organized.

    But then I take my meds, and I wonder what's the point?

    And then the meds run out, and I realize, that just proves it.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    Valkor, 30 Oct 2017 @ 3:06pm

    Poor DOJ, your boilerplate mind tricks don't work on them!

    Poor DOJ... It's almost like they've never had to explain what they wanted, or why!

    (waves hand)
    ... these are not the probable causes you're looking for...
    (waves hand)
    ... you don't need to see their factual basis...
    (waves hand)
    ... here's your gag order, move along...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. icon
    madasahatter (profile), 30 Oct 2017 @ 3:15pm

    Re: government lawyers

    Only the scalps of the 'convicted' because of some semi-bogus charges. Remember, Martha Stewart was never convicted of insider trading but of the minor charge of lying to the FBI. Her lies had no affect on the case but it was the only charge the DA could actually make stick.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. icon
    Bergman (profile), 30 Oct 2017 @ 4:50pm

    Re: Re: government lawyers

    And even with a lying to the FBI charge, there have been reported cases of the FBI falsifying interview records to even get that charge trumped up.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    oliver, 31 Oct 2017 @ 2:27am

    How long until the Streisand Effect takes over and the real target of that investigation is revealed?

    3....2....1.... boom!

    link to this | view in thread ]


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