Government Can Submit Secret Files in Jonathan Pollard Parole Fight
Image by Getty Images
— The U.S. government can file a classified statement to the court in the case of Jonathan Pollard’s strict parole limitations, a federal judge has ruled.
Pollard’s attorneys, who are trying to have the limitations eased, would not be permitted to see the “ex-parte” court submission.
Judge Katherine Forrest of the U.S. District Court in Manhattan ruled Monday that the government could submit the classified statement, but that it must “disclose to Pollard’s attorneys the ‘gist or substance’ of its submission … at a high level of generality that will not disclose classified information,” the Hamodia newspaper and website reported.
Pollard’s attorneys, who were issued security clearances by the Department of Justice in order to represent Pollard, have strongly objected to the government being allowed to submit a secret filing that they would not be permitted to see, according to Hamodia.
Pollard, who was sentenced to life in prison for spying for Israel while working as a U.S. Navy analyst, was released from jail in November on mandatory parole after 30 years, during which time he reportedly was a model prisoner.
The restrictive conditions for Pollard’s five-year parole include wearing an electronic ankle bracelet with GPS tracking and surveillance of his and any employer’s computers. He also is confined to his New York home between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. — a condition, Pollard’s attorneys argue, that has precluded him from holding a job.
Pollard also is not permitted to join his wife, Esther, who he married while he was in prison, in Israel. He is restricted in his computer and internet use, which has prevented him from accepting a job offer to become a senior analyst at a financial firm, according to his attorneys.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
