(Image by Eli Digital Creative from Pixabay via Courthouse News)
RICHMOND, Va. (CN) — Attorneys sparred before a Fourth Circuit panel on Tuesday over the constitutionality of a policy implemented by four federal agencies, which requires former intelligence agency employees and military personnel to obtain the government’s permission before publishing works that relate to their service.
Five former federal employees brought their challenge to the government’s “prepublication review” system in 2019, claiming the policy violated their rights under the First and Fifth Amendment.
Attorneys for the Knight First Amendment Institute and the American Civil Liberties Union who filed a lawsuit in federal court in Maryland on behalf of the public servants say the policy’s submission requirements and review standards are too vague, confusing and overbroad.