L.A. Now Live: FBI Muslim spying vs. personal liberties

A federal judge Tuesday threw out a lawsuit filed against the U.S. government and the FBI over the agency’s spying on Orange County Muslims, ruling that allowing the suit to go forward would risk divulging sensitive state secrets.

Times court reporter Victoria Kim will join L.A. Now Live for a web chat at 9 a.m. to discuss the class-action lawsuit, which was brought by a group of Orange County Muslims who contended their constitutional rights were trampled when the FBI sent an undercover informant into their midst to illegally spy on them.

Comparing himself to Odysseus navigating the waters between a six-headed monster and a deadly whirlpool, U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney wrote that “the state secrets privilege may unfortunately mean the sacrifice of individual liberties for the sake of national security.”

The judge said he reached the decision reluctantly after reviewing confidential declarations filed by top FBI officials, and he was convinced the operation in question involved “intelligence that, if disclosed, would significantly compromise national security.”

Carney allowed the suit to stand against individual FBI agents and supervisors on Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act-related claims.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs said late Tuesday they would appeal the judge's decision.