NEWARK, N.J., Sept. 12 (UPI) -- New Jersey is taking on the National Security Agency in federal court over its demands for customer records from 10 telephone companies.
The state attorney general's office claims state laws were violated when the NSA sought calling records, and the U.S. Justice Department sought to block New Jersey from reviewing what data were released, the Newark (N.J.) Star-Ledger reported Tuesday.
The Justice Department argued allowing the state to see the data would compromise national security, which New Jersey challenged, saying the publicity the program has received contradicts the argument.
"There is no secret for the state secrets privilege to protect," the attorney general's office wrote.
"What the federal government is essentially saying is that they trust phone companies with information that they are now arguing are state secrets, but that they don't trust the New Jersey Attorney General's Office with state secrets," acting Attorney General Anne Milgram said.
U.S. District Court Judge Freda Wolfson is expected to hear arguments in the case in Trenton, N.J., next month, the report said.
