Court orders mediation in watch-list case

WASHIGNTON, D.C., Aug. 24 (UPI) -- A U.S. federal court ordered mediation of a truck driver’s lawsuit against a Homeland Security official over his apparent inclusion on a terrorist watch list.

Atlanta trucker Bilal Mahmud is suing Justin Oberman, who formerly headed the terrorist screening operations of the Transportation Security Administration. In 2004 the TSA rescinded Mahmud’s license to haul hazardous materials after his name apparently turned up on a U.S. government terrorist watch list.

Mahmud’s lawyer, Steven Katz, called him “one of the finest people I’ve ever met. … He never even had a parking ticket.” Mahmud, a decorated Vietnam War veteran and Muslim convert held a top secret clearance while in the military.

Although Mahmud’s license was later restored, he lost his job and, he says, his reputation. “You can’t unring a bell,” he told United Press International. “The first question you get asked when you apply for a job is, ‘Has your license ever been revoked?’ and once you answer ‘Yes,” they want to know why. … The stigma never goes away.”

The U.S. District Court in Atlanta dismissed Mahmud’s case earlier this year, holding effectively that the reinstatement of his license was the only redress to which he was entitled. He has lodged a notice of appeal with the 11th Circuit, where a judge asked the parties to attempt voluntary, non-binding mediation before taking the case further.

The telephone conference with a court-appointed mediator is set for Sept. 21.

Oberman, now a consultant, is represented by U.S. government lawyers because he is being sued for actions he undertook as a government official.

"The mediation is set, and we will take part," said Justice Department spokesman Charles Miller. He declined to comment further, citing a departmental policy against discussing pending litigation.

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Shaun Waterman, UPI Homeland and National Security Editor