Kaiser Gill v. DOJ


United States Court of Appeals FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT Argued September 22, 2017 Decided November 14, 2017 No. 16-5250 KAISER GILL, APPELLANT v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION, APPELLEES Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (No. 1:15-cv-00824) Faisal Gill argued the cause and filed the briefs for appellant. Charles W. Scarborough, Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, argued the cause for appellees. With him on the brief were H. Thomas Byron III and Jaynie Lilley, Attorneys. R. Craig Lawrence, Assistant U.S. Attorney, entered an appearance. Before: ROGERS and TATEL, Circuit Judges, and SILBERMAN, Senior Circuit Judge. Opinion for the Court filed PER CURIAM. 2 Concurring opinion filed by Circuit Judge TATEL. PER CURIAM: The Federal Bureau of Investigation revoked appellant Kaiser Gill’s security clearance after he, while employed as a special agent, conducted unauthorized searches of a Bureau database. Gill filed suit, alleging that the revocation of his security clearance violated the equal protection and due process clauses of the Constitution, as well as the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The district court concluded that Gill’s claims failed or were otherwise barred and dismissed the case. Although following a slightly different path, we reach the same destination and affirm. I. A decorated veteran and Pakistani immigrant, Kaiser Gill worked for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as a special agent until 2006, when the Bureau revoked his security clearance after he conducted unauthorized searches of its Automated Case Support system. Gill sought review of this decision with the Department of Justice’s Access Review Committee (ARC), where he admitted his misconduct and, claiming that the “risk of him engaging in similar misconduct . . . was miniscule,” asked that he be given “another opportunity to perform his duties as an FBI agent.” Memorandum from Mari Barr Santangelo, ARC Chair, to Alex J. Turner, Assistant Director, FBI Security Division, at 4 (Apr. 2, 2014) (“ARC Opinion”). Although the ARC recognized Gill’s remorse, it emphasized that his “admitted misconduct in accessing sensitive information for personal reasons . . . raise[d] straightforward concerns regarding his ability to safeguard classified information.” Id. Citing applicable guidelines requiring that any doubt be resolved in favor of national security, the ARC affirmed the FBI’s revocation of Gill’s security clearance. 3 Gill filed a six-count complaint against the FBI and Department of Justice in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Gill contended that the FBI violated the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) by introducing evidence in the ARC hearings that it obtained through undisclosed FISA- authorized surveillance (Count Three). See 50 U.S.C. § 1806(c) (requiring disclosure of “any information obtained . . . pursuant to the authority of this subchapter” when used as evidence in certain proceedings). Gill also alleged that his due process rights were infringed by the FISA violation (Count Two), by the fact that it took the ARC five years to issue its decision (Count Six), and by the ARC’s treatment in ...

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