Edward Snowden must give government money from book because ex-intelligence contractor didn’t get approval first, judge says – CNBC

Former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden poses for a photo during an interview in an undisclosed location in December 2013 in Moscow, Russia.

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Newly released "Permanent Record" by Edward Snowden is displayed on a shelf at Books Inc. on September 17, 2019 in San Francisco, California.

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O'Grady's ruling noted that all three agreements Snowden signed required him to protect information and material of which he had knowledge from unauthorized disclosure.

They also required him to submit for review any writings or other presentations he prepared which related to intelligence data or protected information.

Snowden's book, which was published in September in the United States by Macmillan Publishing Group, details CIA and NSA intelligence-gathering activities, including classified programs.

Snowden did not get clearance from either agency for the book. Nor did he get clearance for intelligence-related materials he displayed during talks he gave for various public events, which included at least one slide "marked classified at the Top Secret level," the ruling said.

In his defense of the lawsuit, Snowden argued that the government had breached the secrecy agreements "by indicating it would refuse to review Snowden's materials in good faith and within a reasonable time," O'Grady noted in his ruling.

Snowden also argued that the suit "is based on animus toward his viewpoint," and that the government only selectively enforced secrecy agreements, the judge said. And finally, Snowden maintained that the agreements did not support the government's claim against him.

But in his ruling, O'Grady said "the contracts at issue here" the secrecy agreements "are unambiguous and clear."

And the judge said there is "no genuine dispute" that Snowden breached the agreements.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Justice Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment by CNBC about O'Grady's ruling.

Brett Max Kaufman, a lawyer on Snowden's legal team, said, "It's farfetched to believe that the government would have reviewed Mr. Snowden's book or anything else he submitted in good faith."

"For that reason, Mr. Snowden preferred to risk his future royalties than to subject his experiences to improper government censorship," said Kaufman, who is an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union's Center for Democracy.

"We disagree with the court's decision and will review our options, but it's more clear than ever that the unfair and opaque prepublication review system affecting millions of former government employees needs major reforms."

In April, the ACLU and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University filed a lawsuit on behalf of five former public servants challenging the prepublication review system that affects former intelligence-agency employees such as Snowden and military personnel.

The suit argues that the system violates the Constitution's First and Fifth Amendments.

The case was filed for former employees of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, a former CIA employee, a former Marine, and an ex-employee of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

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Edward Snowden must give government money from book because ex-intelligence contractor didn't get approval first, judge says - CNBC