Ashcroft v. al-Kidd
| Ashcroft v. al-Kidd | |
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| Argued March 2, 2011 Decided May 31, 2011 |
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| Full case name | John D. Ashcroft, Petitioner v. Abdullah al-Kidd |
| Citations | 563 U.S. 731 (more)
131 S. Ct. 2074
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| Holding | |
| United States Attorney General John D. Ashcroft could not be personally sued for his involvement in the federal detention of Abdullah al-Kidd, an American citizen, in the wake of the September 11 attacks. | |
| Court membership | |
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| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Scalia, joined by Roberts, Kennedy, Thomas, Alito |
| Concurrence | Kennedy, joined by Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor (part I) |
| Concurrence | Ginsburg, joined by Breyer, Sotomayor |
| Concurrence | Sotomayor |
| Concur/dissent | Ginsburg, Breyer |
| Kagan took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. | |
Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, 563 U.S. 731 (2011), is a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that U.S. Attorney General John D. Ashcroft could not be personally sued for his involvement in the detention of a U.S. citizen in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.
The plaintiff, Abdullah al-Kidd (born Lavoni T. Kidd in Wichita, Kansas), is an American citizen and was a prominent football player at the University of Idaho. While at college, Kidd converted to Islam and adopted the name Abdullah al-Kidd. Al-Kidd was arrested by federal agents in 2003 at Dulles International Airport. He was travelling to Saudi Arabia to attend school. He was held for two weeks under the federal material-witness statute and controlled by supervised release for 13 months because he was to testify in the trial of Sami Omar Al-Hussayen. The latter was tried and acquitted on charges of supporting terrorist organizations.
At the time of al-Kidd's arrest, the FBI Director Robert S. Mueller told Congress that it was one of the FBI's "success" stories. Al-Kidd was never charged or called as a witness, and he was ultimately released.
Al-Kidd filed suit against John Ashcroft, who was U.S. Attorney General from 2001 to 2005. Al-Kidd alleges that he was denied access to a lawyer, shackled, and strip-searched. The American Civil Liberties Union, which represented al-Kidd, claim that he is one of 70 Muslim men who were similarly treated.
The federal government said that Ashcroft has absolute immunity from such civil suits because he was acting within the scope of his duties as US Attorney General. In the alternative, Ashcroft has qualified immunity that prevents such suits unless the official violated a right that was clearly established at the time of the violation.
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