Declassified UFO / UAP Document
Memorandum and Order — Citizens Against UFO Secrecy v. National Security Agency
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AI-Generated Summary
This is a 1980 court order dismissing a FOIA lawsuit filed by Citizens Against UFO Secrecy against the NSA. The court ruled that the NSA properly withheld sensitive documents related to UFOs under national security exemptions.
This document is a Memorandum and Order issued by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia on November 18, 1980, regarding the case Citizens Against UFO Secrecy v. National Security Agency (Civil Action No. 80-1562). The plaintiff had sought access to all documents in the possession of the National Security Agency (NSA) related to UFOs and UFO phenomena. The NSA had provided some material but withheld other documents, citing various exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), specifically 5 U.S.C. § 552(b) (1976). The majority of the withheld material consisted of communications intelligence reports, which the defendant argued were protected under FOIA Exemptions 1 and 3. Four documents at issue were not intelligence reports, but the defendant withheld one in its entirety and portions of three others under Exemptions 5 and 6. The Court reviewed a public affidavit and a top-secret, 21-page in camera affidavit submitted by NSA official Eugene Yeates. Based on these, the Court concluded that the exemptions were properly applied and that the release of the material could seriously jeopardize the agency's work and national security. The Court noted that the communications intelligence reports related to the most sensitive activities of the defendant and fell under the protection of Public Law 86-36. Consequently, the Court granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment and dismissed the case.
The Court finds that release of this material could seriously jeopardize the work of the agency and the security of the United States.
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Official Assessment
The court granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment, finding that the claimed FOIA exemptions were properly and conscientiously applied and that the release of the material could seriously jeopardize the work of the agency and the security of the United States.
The court determined that the withheld documents, which consisted primarily of communications intelligence reports, were protected under FOIA exemptions 1 and 3, as well as exemptions 5 and 6 for non-intelligence documents. The court relied on a public affidavit and a detailed 21-page in camera affidavit provided by NSA official Eugene Yeates to reach its decision.
Key Persons
- Eugene YeatesNational Security Agency official