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January 19, 2006

Our friend Radley Balko alerts us to disturbing news from the U.S. District Court in San Jose. In court papers Justice Department officials are asking a federal judge to "order Google to turn over a broad range of material from its closely guarded databases," reports the Mercury News. Among the requests are "1 million random Web addresses and records of all Google searches from any one-week period." Apparently the request is part of a broader effort by the DOJ to revive the Child Online Protection Act.

The Act was struck down by the Supreme Court two years ago on the grounds that it was overly broad and prevented adults from accessing legal websites. But in striking down the Act the Court invited the government to "either come up with a less drastic version of the law or go to trial to prove that the statute does not violate the First Amendment and is the only viable way to combat child porn." This request is designed to show "how often Web users encounter online porn and how Web searches turn up material they say is 'harmful to minors.'"

Apparently other search engines have released the requested information; only Google has not.

Posted by Joshua Claybourn at January 19, 2006 01:05 PM

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