He may become one of the great American heroes. He's won his suit against the government -- the judge ruled two provisions of the Patriot Act in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Mayfield claimed that secret searches of his house and office under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act violated the Fourth Amendment's guarantee against unreasonable search and seizure. Aiken agreed with Mayfield, repeatedly criticizing the government.
"For over 200 years, this Nation has adhered to the rule of law _ with unparalleled success. A shift to a Nation based on extra-constitutional authority is prohibited, as well as ill-advised," she wrote.
By asking her to dismiss Mayfield's lawsuit, the judge said, the U.S. attorney general's office was "asking this court to, in essence, amend the Bill of Rights, by giving it an interpretation that would deprive it of any real meaning. This court declines to do so."
I wrote extensively on the Mayfield case back in 2004. Not only did the FBI screw up big-time, as well as lying to a judge, but the Spanish authorities told them point-blank that Mayfield's prints were not a match.
We'll see how far the gov wants to fight this one -- and how many times the DoJ says "9/11" in its arguments.
I'm out of time this morning. I may post more on Mayfield and the whole Patriot Act nightmare if I find the time.
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