SAN FRANCISCO, July 26 (UPI) -- A federal judge has ruled that lawsuits brought by several states against telecommunications companies regarding wiretapping can proceed.
U.S. District Judge Vaughan Walker, the chief judge in the Northern California district, did not rule on a request by the government to dismiss the suits on the grounds of national security, Wired reported. The judge rejected the claim in a similar suit, a decision that is under appeal.
Five states -- Connecticut, Maine, Missouri, New Jersey and Vermont -- have sued telecom firms, asking them to turn over information on their cooperation with the National Security Agency to state public utility commissions. In his decision Tuesday, Walker said states have the right to determine whether the companies violated their privacy laws.
A hearing on the national security issue is scheduled for Aug. 15 before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
