Judge: Gitmo legal documents must be public

[ThomWV]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090601/ap_on_go_ot/us_guantanamo_documents

"By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer Nedra Pickler, Associated Press Writer – Mon Jun 1, 4:03 pm ET

WASHINGTON – A federal judge ordered the United States on Monday to publicly reveal unclassified versions of its allegations and evidence justifying the continued imprisonment of more than 100 detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay.

The Justice Department had been filing unclassified versions of its legal documents under seal, so that they could only be seen by judges, attorneys and government officials. Attorneys for the detainees were able to share the documents with their clients and witnesses who would agree to rules restricting the information's disclosure.

Department officials said the practice was necessary to protect national security after they discovered that some unclassified records mistakenly contained some classified information. The department had said the documents were only sealed temporarily while they could be more carefully reviewed for classified information."

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