- Term
- 2023-2024
FBI v. Fikre
Yonas Fikre, a U.S. citizen, discovered that the FBI had placed him on a “No Fly List” while he was abroad in 2010. He was unable to return to the U.S. for four years. The FBI interrogated him about attending a mosque in Oregon and implied that they would remove him from the No Fly List if Fikre became an informant (he refused). Months later, he was imprisoned and tortured in the United Arab Emirates, where officials told them they were acting on behalf of the FBI. Fikre sued the FBI for their unconstitutional actions, and three years into the suit, the FBI removed him from the No Fly List. The FBI argued that his suit was moot — despite their ability to re-list him on the No Fly List at any time and the years of harm Fikre suffered. The ACLU has identified 40 U.S. citizens or residents who challenged the constitutionality of being placed on the No Fly List — in 70% of those cases, the government removed them from the No Fly List during litigation and avoided a merits decision.
On March 19, 2024, in a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled that Yonas Fikre could continue to pursue his lawsuit against the FBI.
