Reporters Committee Seeks Judicial Records Of Warrant Served To Search Washington Post Reporter’s Home

A major journalism group is seeking access to the warrant and other judicial records related to the extraordinary search of the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson . The Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press filed an application with the U.S. District Court in Alexandria. The group’s attorneys wrote that “as of this writing, the affidavit purporting to justify that exceptional measure remains sealed in its entirety, alongside every other judicial record related to the warrant. The public is therefore left with no means to understand the government’s basis for seeking (and a federal court’s basis for approving) a search with dramatic implications for a free press and the constitutional rights of journalists.” The search of Natanson’s home early Wednesday drew alarm from First Amendment groups, as Donald Trump ‘s administration engages in an effort to find and, in some cases, prosecute leakers. Watch on Deadline The Post was told that Natanson was not the focus of the investigation. The Post reported that the warrant said that the investigation was of Aurelio Perez-Lugones, a system administrator who has a security clearance and is accused of retaining classified intelligence reports.” An arrest warrant was executed in his case on Jan. 9, according to court records. Agents searched the reporter’s home and her devices and seized a phone, two laptops and a Garmin watch, according to the Post. One of the computers was issued to Natanson by the Post, the other was her personal laptop, the Post reported. Matt Murray, the executive editor of the Post, wrote in a memo to staffers that “this extraordinary, aggressive action is deeply concerning and raises profound questions and concern around the constitutional protections for our work. The Washington Post has a long history of zealous support for robust press freedoms. The entire institution stands by those freedoms and our work.” Jeff Bezos, the owner of the Post, has yet to comment on the situation. The Reporters Committee cited comments from Attorney General Pam Bondi, who claimed that Natanson “was obtaining and reporting classified and illegally leaked information from a Pentagon contractor.” The group’s attorneys wrote, “If the Attorney General can describe the justification for searching a reporter’s home on social media .... it is difficult to see what harm could result from unsealing the justification that the Justice Department offered to this Court. The Search Warrant Materials should be unsealed.”

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