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The Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 (, ) is a
United States federal law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as ...
that makes it a
federal crime In the United States, a federal crime or federal offense is an act that is made illegal by U.S. federal legislation enacted by both the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives and signed into law by the president. Prosec ...
for those with access to
classified information Classified information is material that a government body deems to be sensitive information that must be protected. Access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of people with the necessary security clearance and need to kno ...
, or those who systematically seek to identify and expose covert agents and have reason to believe that it will harm the foreign intelligence activities of the U.S., to intentionally reveal the identity of an agent whom one knows to be in or recently in certain covert roles with a U.S. intelligence agency, unless the United States has publicly acknowledged or revealed the relationship.


History

The law was written, in part, as a response to several incidents where
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
(CIA) agents or officers' identities were revealed. Under then existing law, such disclosures were legal when they did not involve the release of classified information. In 1975, CIA
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
station chief Richard Welch was assassinated by the
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
urban guerrilla group
November 17 Events Pre-1600 * 887 – Emperor Charles the Fat is deposed by the Frankish magnates in an assembly at Frankfurt, leading his nephew, Arnulf of Carinthia, to declare himself king of the East Frankish Kingdom in late November. * 1183 &nd ...
after his identity was revealed in several listings by a magazine called '' CounterSpy,'' edited by Timothy Butz. A local paper checked with ''CounterSpy'' to confirm his identity. However, the linkage between the publication of Welch's name and his assassination has been challenged by pundits that claim he was residing in a known CIA residency. Another major impetus to pass the legislation was the activities of ex-CIA case officer
Philip Agee Philip Burnett Franklin Agee (; January 19, 1935 – January 7, 2008)Will Weissert"Ex-CIA Agent Philip Agee Dead in Cuba" Associated Press (sfgate.com), January 9, 2008. was a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) case officer and writer of ...
during the 1960s and 1970s. Agee's book '' CIA Diary'' and his publication of the '' Covert Action Information Bulletin'' blew the cover of many agents. Some commentators say the law was specifically targeted at his actions, and one Congressman,
Bill Young Charles William Young (December 16, 1930 – October 18, 2013) was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1971 until his death in 2013. A Republican from Florida, Young served as chairman of the H ...
, said during a
House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
debate, "What we're after today are the Philip Agees of the world." The law passed the House by a vote of 315–32, with all opposing votes coming from Democrats. The law passed the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...
81–4, with the opponents being Democratic Senators Joe Biden,
Gary Hart Gary Warren Hart ('' né'' Hartpence; born November 28, 1936) is an American politician, diplomat, and lawyer. He was the front-runner for the 1988 Democratic presidential nomination until he dropped out amid revelations of extramarital affairs ...
, and
Daniel Patrick Moynihan Daniel Patrick Moynihan (March 16, 1927 – March 26, 2003) was an American politician, diplomat and sociologist. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented New York in the United States Senate from 1977 until 2001 and served as an ...
, and Republican Senator
Charles Mathias Charles McCurdy Mathias Jr. (July 24, 1922 – January 25, 2010) was an American politician and attorney. A Republican, he served as a member of the United States Senate, representing Maryland from 1969 to 1987. He was also a member of th ...
. Biden had written an op-ed column in the ''
Christian Science Monitor Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...
'' published on April 6, 1982 that criticized the proposed law as harmful to national security. , there have been only two successful prosecutions involving the statute. In 1985, Sharon Scranage, a secretary in the CIA's office in Accra, Ghana, was sentenced to five years and served eight months, for giving the names of other agents to her boyfriend in
Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and ...
. In January, 2013 John C. Kiriakou, a former CIA officer, who accepted a
plea bargain A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or ''nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...
, is serving a prison sentence for disclosing the name of another CIA officer to a reporter.


First Amendment implications

The criminal provisions of the act are contained in 50 U.S.C. § 421. During Congress's consideration of the measure, much attention is paid to subsection 421(c), which states: Under this subsection, journalists and political commentators alike could be prosecuted should they show an effort towards discovering or revealing identities of covert agents. However, it was ultimately concluded by the Senate Judiciary and the Conference Committee that the measure is constitutionally sound. Individuals would only be prosecuted if they engage in a pattern of activities intended to identify and expose covert agents, on the grounds that such actions goes beyond information that might contribute to informed public debate on foreign policy or foreign intelligence activities. The Conference Committee assured that U.S. intelligence critics would be beyond the reach of law so long as they do not actively seek to identify or expose covert agents. However, commentators are still wary of the measure, finding 421(c) standard over-broad since it lacks a 'specific intent requirement' and instead relies on a 'reason to believe' standard.


Valerie Plame affair

Between 2003 and 2007, an investigation was conducted by prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald into whether this law and others were violated in the identification of
Valerie Plame Valerie Elise Plame (born August 13, 1963) is an American writer, spy novelist, and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. As the subject of the 2003 Plame affair, also known as the CIA leak scandal, Plame's identity as a CIA office ...
as a CIA operative in a 2003
newspaper column A column is a recurring piece or article in a newspaper, magazine or other publication, where a writer expresses their own opinion in few columns allotted to them by the newspaper organisation. Columns are written by columnists. What different ...
by
Robert Novak Robert David Sanders Novak (February 26, 1931 – August 18, 2009) was an American syndicated columnist, journalist, television personality, author, and conservative political commentator. After working for two newspapers before serving in the ...
. As a result of the investigation, former Vice Presidential Chief-of-Staff "Scooter" Libby was convicted on two counts of
perjury Perjury (also known as foreswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an inst ...
, one count of
obstruction of justice Obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, is an act that involves unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investigators, or other gov ...
and one count of
making false statements Making false statements () is the common name for the United States federal process crime laid out in Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code, which generally prohibits knowingly and willfully making false or fraudulent statements, o ...
to federal investigators and sentenced to thirty months in jail. In a court filing related to Libby's sentencing, the CIA stated that Plame was a covert agent at the time of the leak. In addition, the leak enabled the identification of Plame as an employee of the CIA front company,
Brewster Jennings & Associates Brewster Jennings & Associates was a front company set up in 1994 by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as a cover for its officers. The most famous is Valerie Plame, a "covert employee of the CIA" whose then- classified status was published in ...
, and in doing so enabled the identification of other CIA agents who were "employed" there.


Who is Rich Blee?

In 2011 Ray Nowosielski and John Duffy of SecrecyKills.org planned to release an audio documentary entitled " Who is Rich Blee?", focusing on the CIA's Bin Ladin unit before 9/11, and the way certain CIA officials blocked information on 9/11 hijackers from reaching the FBI before 9/11. In the documentary they planned to reveal the identity of two CIA agents. One of them is "
Frances Frances is a French and English given name of Latin origin. In Latin the meaning of the name Frances is 'from France' or 'free one.' The male version of the name in English is Francis. The original Franciscus, meaning "Frenchman", comes from the F ...
", the red-headed CIA agent mentioned in several reports on the War on Terror, including Jane Mayer's The Dark Side and an AP news story from 2011 about the
Khalid El-Masri Khaled El-Masri (also Khalid El-Masri and Khaled Masri, Levantine Arabic pronunciation: , ar, خالد المصري) (born 29 June 1963) is a German and Lebanese citizen who was mistakenly abducted by the Macedonian police in 2003, and handed o ...
case. However, after receiving threats under the IIPA, Duffy and Nowosielski decided to release the documentary with the names redacted. The CIA threatened them with prosecution. They claim that their webmaster later posted an email containing the identities by accident. The identities then spread to the wider Internet.


John Kiriakou

A former CIA officer, John Kiriakou, was charged with offenses under the act. On Tuesday, October 23, 2012 Kiriakou pleaded guilty to violating the Intelligence Identities Protection Act. As part of a plea agreement, Kiriakou accepted a 30-month prison term, while the charges filed under the
Espionage Act The Espionage Act of 1917 is a United States federal law enacted on June 15, 1917, shortly after the United States entered World War I. It has been amended numerous times over the years. It was originally found in Title 50 of the U.S. Code (Wa ...
were dropped. He was sentenced on January 25, 2013. This was the first conviction of a CIA officer under the Intelligence Identities Protection Act in 27 years.Oct 2012, washingtonpost.com
/ref>


See also

*
Espionage Act of 1917 The Espionage Act of 1917 is a United States federal law enacted on June 15, 1917, shortly after the United States entered World War I. It has been amended numerous times over the years. It was originally found in Title 50 of the U.S. Code (Wa ...
* Executive Order 12958 * Executive Order 13292


External links


C.I.A. Inquiry May Hinge on What the Leaker Knew
(''New York Times'' article)
Plame Out. The ridiculous end to the scandal that distracted Washington
(''Slate'' article by
Christopher Hitchens Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British-American author and journalist who wrote or edited over 30 books (including five essay collections) on culture, politics, and literature. Born and educated in England, ...
)
Who Is Rich Blee? Find out 9.11.11 @SecrecyKills.com - FF4Films - YouTube


References

{{reflist, 2 1982 in law 97th United States Congress Plame affair United States federal defense and national security legislation United States government secrecy Acts of the 97th United States Congress