U.K. Police Open Criminal Probe Based on Journalist's Seized Snowden Materials

[bemildred]

Source: WSJ

LONDON--U.K. police have opened a criminal investigation based on materials seized during the recent detention here of the partner of a journalist who has as written about National Security Agency surveillance programs and fugitive document leaker Edward Snowden.

Lawyers representing London's Metropolitan Police disclosed the investigation during a hearing at a British court on Thursday, but declined to elaborate on who was the target of the probe, or what potential crimes had been committed. A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said it didn't immediately have any further comment.

The hearing in London's High Court related to a claim filed by David Miranda--the partner of Glenn Greenwald, a journalist for the Guardian newspaper--challenging the lawfulness of his detention for nearly nine hours and the seizure of his electronic equipment, including mobile phone, laptop and memory sticks, by British police on Sunday at Heathrow Airport.

Mr. Miranda was in transit on his way from Berlin to Rio de Janeiro, where he lives with Mr. Greenwald, an American. Mr. Miranda was transporting journalistic material between Mr. Greenwald and a Berlin-based documentary filmmaker who had worked extensively with the Guardian journalist on his NSA stories.

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20130822-708136.html

[dkf]

1. Gee I wonder if the US has any role in this?

[bemildred]

2. I dunno, but I thought the court said they couldn't do this?

Open an investigation based on the seized stuff?

[dkf]

9. Yes I think I did read that.

[maddezmom]

10. That was the way I read it as well

This whole scenario is beyond messed up.

[bemildred]

11. A lot of people runnng around with their own scripts.

Too many people trying to manage our perceptions and not in agreement as to what we are to think.

[Cryptoad]

13. Reading is a critical skill.... nt

courts did not say they couldn't do it ,,, they said they would have claim what they were doing for different reason like national Security.....

[bemildred]

14. Writing seems to be a critical skill too. nt

[maddezmom]

20. Here another link with some more info

Police face investigation into whether use of anti-terror laws to detain journalist's partner was 'appropriate and humane' as High Court grants injunction stopping use of documents

Lawyers for David Miranda asked for High Court injunction against officials
They hoped to stop Government examining data seized from 28-year-old
Judges granted limited injunction allowing exemption for national security
Police have started investigation of documents but must put it on hold
Independent watchdog has launched investigation into his detention
Miranda, the partner of Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald, claims the nine-hour detention at the airport on Sunday was illegal
It has emerged that Downing Street knew of the plan to detain the Brazilian
David Cameron asked Cabinet Secretary to intervene after the Guardian published documents leaked by Edward Snowden


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2399932/Glenn-Greenwalds-partner-David-Miranda-wins-limited-injunction-stop-use-Edward-Snowden-documents.html#ixzz2cj3mfMGa
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

[bemildred]

22. Yes, thanks, that's what I was getting at.

It appears they have been wrong-footed again, the cops.

[struggle4progress]

39. "... The High Court ruled the authorities could examine the seized material for the defence of

national security and also to investigate whether Mr Miranda, 28, is a person who is or has been concerned with the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism ..."
22 August 2013
Last updated at 11:39 ET
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-23790578

[Cali_Democrat]

32. Do you have any evidence...

that the US is involved in the launching of this criminal probe by the UK?

[dkf]

36. I have evidence they lie all the time.

[Cali_Democrat]

37. So the answer to my question is no

Thanks for playing.

[dkf]

38. Of course we aren't going to see things immediately in our new secret law society.

It takes whistleblowers and leakers nowadays for us to know what our government is up to.

[Helen Borg]

3. Will they plant child porn on his computer?

Just waiting for something like that to happen.

[Cryptoad]

4. you dont know much about file structure on computers do you? nt

[backscatter712]

19. I do - copying files isn't that hard.

Trickier is planting stuff in his browsing history and cache to make it look like he's been surfing kiddie-porn stuff for a while - that requires a bit of database knowhow. Still, Firefox and Chrome use SQLite databases to store stuff like browsing history. And as Chrome and Firefox are open-source, digging up details of how these browsers do caching isn't hard.

Here's some of the details of how Chrome does it - http://www.chromium.org/developers/design-documents/network-stack/disk-cache

It's a bit technical, but I'm sure a three-letter government agency that specializes in digital snooping and hacking can find someone who can figure it out...

[bemildred]

21. You can write anything you want on a hard drive, anything at all.

Even easier to fake than paper. And that's fact.

[backscatter712]

23. Exactly. n/t

[uhnope]

8. They don't need child porn. This non-journalist was trafficking in dangerous stolen materials

Ms. May has defended the actions of the police, saying authorities have a duty to protect the public. She has said if police believe that somebody has "highly sensitive stolen information that could help terrorists--that could lead to a loss of lives--it is right that the police should act."

[blackspade]

18. And this bullshit statement is based on what?

This is a typical authoritarian ass covering statement.

[uhnope]

34. Since GG acknowledged that Miranda was a courier for Snowden docs, it's not exactly BS

[blackspade]

40. Citation please

Greenwald already has all of the Snowden documents.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

29. ^^^This post (#8) is making declarative statements as if they're true. Don't take at face value.^^^

-brought to you by the anti-propaganda league.

[Cryptoad]

5. If you want to be a Mule for criminals

you gotta to expect such thingys

[cosmicone]

7. He was a mule for a journalist.

Unless you think journalists reporting a landmark story important to the privacy of the whole world is a criminal.

[Cryptoad]

12. He is a political operative in journalist clothing

and knowingly having stolen property is a crime last time i looked.
I bet the farm he will be charged with crimes before this is over..
The Legal Dept of the Guardian is already starting to separate themselves from this mess.

Man,,,,, the Paulist are playing yall!

[Vinnie From Indy]

15. Well gee, Mr. Law and Order, what about Barton Gellman?

Should he be arrested?He has a trove of Snowden documents.
The Guardian and the WaPo both have the Snowden docs.

What about them?

Should anyone in possession of Snowden documents at those newspapers be arrested?

What about people that have simply met with Snowden? Should they be stopped and searched and detained?

I mean you can't sit here and be a cheerleader for this and NOT also demand that others be arrested for being in possession of stolen documents can you?

[WilliamPitt]

17. Do you practice at Fail

or does it come naturally?

...warfle warfle Paulists derp derp durr...

Sick, sick thinking to call journalists criminals.

[go west young man]

24. It's been humorous watching...

CryptoadUnhope work to paint everyone as Paulites this past week or two. Low post counts plus love of authority plus stale one liners with no links to back anything up equals rightwing troll I do believe. Possibly even a paid gov't shill.

[hueymahl]

25. +1

I'm not calling them trolls. Personal attacks are against site policy. But there is that old saying, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck . . .

I'm sure they are just taking principled stands, just haven't figured out how to back up their arguments or use logic yet. I'm sure that will come.

[cosmicone]

27. +1000

The freeper aroma -- I mean stench -- is overwhelming.

[Mojorabbit]

30. You mentioned the Pauls. The post therefore fails. nt

[Valhallakey]

31. It was stolen from the American People, they are giving it back

We paid for it we should know about it! Government by the people for the people. So many abuses and so many revelations about serious overstepping the bounds in which a democracy can survive... how can you call people Paulists? Even then often people can agree on some points and not on others. I do agree with the Paulist on this issue... so name call away I suppose if it makes you feel better.

[backscatter712]

35. There's that homophobic "mule" meme again... n/t

[msanthrope]

6. Ms. Poitras may want to remove herself from the EU. nt

[blackspade]

16. I love how they 'decline' to elaborate on the 'target'

There is no transparency to the justice system anymore especially here in the US.

[KittyWampus]

26. This is happening in the UK. LOL!

[Vinnie From Indy]

28. Have you ever answered my question about Bart Gellman?

I have not seen it and I have asked three times now!

How can anyone take you seriously when duck and run from simple questions???

I will ask again!

Do you think Bart Gellman and his family members are fair game for the British authorities to detain should they travel through or in Great Britiain?

It is a simple question!

Cheers!

[blackspade]

33. No kidding sherlock.

Sense you missed my point:

"There is no transparency to the justice system anymore especially here in the US."

In other words, Britain seems almost as bad for transparency in their justice system as it is in the United States.