Warrantless Surveillance Challenged by Defendant

A Colorado resident charged with terrorism-related offenses challenged the constitutionality of a 2008 law allowing the National Security Agency to conduct a sweeping program of surveillance without warrants on American soil. The challenge -- the first of its kind -- could lead to a Supreme Court test of the program. At the same time, a Federal District Court judge in Illinois ordered the government to show a defense lawyer classified materials related to the national security surveillance of his client. No defense lawyer has apparently ever been allowed to see such materials since the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was enacted in 1978. Together, the two actions are significant developments in efforts to obtain more judicial review of the legality of surveillance conducted on domestic soil for national security purposes amid continuing fallout from leaks about NSA wiretapping by Edward J. Snowden, a former agency contractor.