Al-Ghizzawi v. Bush

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
ABDUL HAMID AL-GHIZZAWI,
Petitioner,
v. Civil Action No. 05-2378 (JDB)
GEORGE W. BUSH, et al.,
Respondents.
ORDER
Before the Court is [277] respondents' emergency motion to enforce the protective orders
in this case, which was filed yesterday. Respondents ask the Court to order petitioner's counsel
to remove an article from her website that respondents contend reveals protected information.
See Resp'ts' Mot. to Enforce the Protective Orders [Docket Entry 273], at 1. They also request
that the Court direct petitioner's counsel "not to further disseminate 'protected' information." Id.
For her part, petitioner's counsel asserts that the information she posted on her website and used
in the article was disclosed by the government before the present dispute. See Pet'r's Opp'n to
Respt'ts' Mot. [Docket Entry 274], at 5. Accordingly, she offers, "it is an extraordinarily odd
situation to permit everyone else in the world to discuss this matter except counsel." Id. She also
suggests that this Court has no jurisdiction to address a filing made in the Supreme Court in
petitioner's original habeas corpus proceeding. See Pet'r's Supplemental Resp. to Resp'ts' Mot.
[Docket Entry 276], at 2-3.
Petitioner's counsel is bound by the various protective orders in this case, whether or not
any "protected" information is now available on the internet. Here, despite its apparent
inadvertent disclosure, the disputed information remains "protected" material. And accordingly,
petitioner's counsel is precluded from disclosing it. Therefore, it is hereby
ORDERED that respondents' motion is GRANTED pending further order of the Court;
it is further
ORDERED that petitioner's counsel shall remove the article entitled "The Muzzle is
Back On" from her website because it contains "protected" information and derivative material; it
is further
ORDERED that petitioner's counsel shall not disclose "protected" information and
information or documents derived from "protected" information as defined by the protective
orders in this case; and it is further
ORDERED that the parties may file supplemental memoranda, limited to fifteen (15)
pages, addressing this matter by not later than December 7, 2009.
SO ORDERED.
/s/
JOHN D. BATES
United States District Judge
Dated: November 25, 2009