Hero is an overused word. In this case, it is appropriate.
Seven years ago, when Nicholas was the CEO of an Internet Service Provider in New York, the FBI brought him a National Security Letter demanding a significant amount of information about several of his customers, and
although the letter’s gag order “was totally clear that they were saying that I couldn’t speak to a lawyer” about it, he immediately contacted his personal attorney, and together they went to the ACLU in New York, which agreed to represent him.
Did I mention that the letter carried a life-long gag order with a 5 year jail sentence for violations? And that the gag order prevented him from talking to his family and his lawyer. And that it wasn’t accompanied by a subpoena?
What did Nicholas do? He thought this was unAmerican, and he lawyered up.
He and the ACLU argued that the government’s request for information was unconstitutionally overbroad and that the gag order was unconstitutional as well.
Well. The gag order has been lifted and several solid holdings came out of the Second Circuit. Good news for recipients of the 200,000 national security letters issued in the past few years, and good news for all Americans.
Kudos and thanks to you, Nicholas, and to the ACLU… I will be following your new venture The Calyx Institute closely.
