ACLU Seeks Government Accountability Regarding Federal “No Fly” List

ACLU Files Request under the Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act
For Immediate Release: December 12, 2002

SAN FRANCISCO – The ACLU of Northern California filed requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act seeking information about the government’s “no fly list” and other government watch lists today. The requests were filed on behalf of Jan Adams and Rebecca Gordon, who were told by airline agents that their names appeared on a “no fly” list at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The requests were filed with the Transportation Security Agency (TSA), the FBI in Washington D.C., and the FBI in San Francisco.

“We want to find out how a person's name gets on government watch lists like the "no fly" list, and how a person can get their name off such lists,” said Jayashri Srikantiah, staff attorney with the ACLU of Northern California. “There should be public accountability as to government watch lists like the "no fly" list."

The requests also seek information on the number of names on the “no fly” list or other government watch lists, the number of times that individuals were incorrectly identified as being on such lists at SFO and other airports across the country, and whether individuals are targeted for such lists based on First Amendment activity.

On November 14, 2002, the ACLU-NC sent a request to SFO under the California Public Records Act asking for documents relating to the SFO incident involving Jan Adams and Rebecca Gordon. SFO responded by providing documentation confirming the existence of a “no-fly” list, and also confirming that Ms. Adams' and Ms. Gordons’ names were checked against a master “FBI list.”

Jan Adams and Rebecca Gordon were stopped at SFO on August 7, 2002 when they checked in for an American Trans Air (ATA) flight to Boston via Chicago. The ATA agents who checked them in told them that their names appeared on a “no fly” list. San Francisco police arrived and informed Ms. Adams and Ms. Gordon that the police would have to check whether their names appeared on a “master list.” Although they were eventually allowed to fly, their boarding passes were marked with a red “S," which subjected them to additional searches at SFO.