BAY
AREA DATELINES Suit
against ADL may move forward San
Francisco --
Pro-Palestinian and anti-apartheid
activists are entitled to learn whether a
Jewish civil rights organization illegally
disclosed confidential information about
them, a state appeals court
ruled. Monday's ruling by the 1st District
Court of Appeal should enable the
activists to go to trial in their
long-stalled suit against the Anti-Defamation
League of B'nai B'rith, said the
activists' lawyer, Pete
McCloskey. However, ADL regional Director
Barbara Bergen said the ruling
"reaffirms our status as a journalistic
organization, with the right to protect
our files." She said the terms of the
court's order do not entitle the activists
to any new information because there have
been no illegal disclosures. Some of the information sought by the
activists is contained in more than 17,000
ADL files seized
by San Francisco police in 1992. The activists were notified by police
that their names were in the files. They
contend the ADL illegally obtained
confidential records, such as driver's
licenses and Social Security numbers, from
the state and used them to get people
blacklisted among the organization's
supporters. The ADL denies
having a blacklist and says it was
merely keeping tabs on hate groups and
terrorists. ©1998
San Francisco Examiner | 
Ruling Allows Activists To Sue Over
Disclosure
Bay Area political
activists who have sued a Jewish civil
rights organization are entitled to learn
whether the group illegally disclosed
confidential information about them, a
state appeals court ruled
yesterday. The ruling by the Court of Appeals
should enable the activists to go to trial
in their long-stalled suit against the
Anti-Defamation
League of B'nai B'rith. The activists' suit, which asks for
class-action status for as many as 1,000
people, relies on a state law banning
disclosure of confidential government
information, with damages of $2,500 for
each disclosure. Filed in 1993, the suit
has been delayed by a dispute over the
confidentiality of ADL files. ADL regional director Barbara
Bergen said that although the decision
``leaves open the possibility of limited
future discovery from the League,'' ADL
officials predicted it would lead to a
legal victory for the group in future
litigation. The organization, which publishes
newsletters about hate groups, has the
legal status of a journalist, and it says
it is therefore entitled to keep its files
and sources confidential. The appeals court, however, ruled 3 to
0 that the ADL could not keep its files
secret if they were used for
nonjournalistic activity. ©1998
San Francisco Chronicle |
Posted
Thursday,
December 17, 1998 
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