Former Defense Secretary Files Prior Restraint Suit Against the Department of Defense

On November 28th, Mark Esper, who served as the defense secretary during the Trump administration, filed a lawsuit against the Department of Defense (DoD) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In his complaint, Esper says the DoD has “unlawfully imposed a prior restraint upon Mr. Esper by delaying, obstructing and infringing on his constitutional right to publish his unclassified manuscript entitled ‘A Sacred Oath’.”

Mattis Aide’s Book Released by the Pentagon Following Prior Restraint Suit

Less than two weeks after a former Navy pilot sued the Department of Defense (DoD) for delaying the review of his book, “Holding the Line: Inside Trump’s Pentagon with Secretary Mattis,” the DoD cleared the book for publication.

Ex-Aide to Former Defense Secretary James Mattis Sues Pentagon for Unlawful Prior Restraint

Snodgrass says that Department of Defense unreasonably delayed the review of his upcoming book despite his efforts to include only unclassified material.

Prepublication Review: An “Unconstitutional Censorship” of Former Intelligence Officials?

Five former intelligence officials are suing two U.S. intelligence agencies and the Department of Defense, challenging the constitutionality of the agencies’ “prepublication review” system. The prepublication review system requires current and former intelligence agency employees and military personnel to submit  for government approval anything they write about their past work.