NEW YORK (AP) -- American-born Taliban soldier John Walker Lindh can keep his reasons for seeking a reduction in his 20-year sentence to himself, a federal appeals court said Monday.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York ruled that a lower court judge last year correctly rejected a Freedom of Information Act request by The Associated Press.
A three-judge panel of the appeals court said the AP failed to show that releasing the contents of a petition seeking a sentence reduction would shed light on the workings of government.
The AP in January 2006 asked the Department of Justice for any petitions sent by Lindh, who was sentenced in 2002 after he pleaded guilty to various crimes in which he admitted aiding the Taliban in Afghanistan.
The AP argued that Lindh's reasoning for a shorter sentence should be public because of high public interest, the need for insight into the government's handling of the case and the possibility of revelations of government misconduct.
The government argued that secrecy was necessary because the documents were similar to personal and medical records and because there were no allegations of government misconduct.
Lindh was captured in November 2001 in the U.S.-led invasion to overthrow the Taliban after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The appeals court said the AP failed to show how Lindh's petition for a lower sentence would serve a public purpose.
The 2nd Circuit noted the breakdown of negotiations between Lindh's lawyers and the AP aimed at a release of the information with redactions to protect Lindh's privacy and safety.
The appeals court said it "was difficult to escape the conclusion that AP seeks release of purely private information,'' an opinion disputed by AP associate general counsel Dave Tomlin.
"The court leaped to the wrong conclusion,'' Tomlin said. "AP was absolutely not seeking information that qualified for a privacy exemption under FOIA. But we weren't willing to agree that Lindh himself should be the one to decide what he was entitled to withhold, and that was the only deal offered to us.''
The government has said it could only release documents with Lindh's written consent. Lindh is barred by his plea agreement from publicly commenting on the matter.
Government spokeswoman Yusill Scribner said government lawyers had no comment.
David Schulz, who argued the case for the AP, said he was disappointed by the ruling and the AP was considering further options.
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