Rights Groups, Journalists, and Whistleblowers Call for Courtney Williams’ Release

A coalition of more than two dozen press freedom and human rights groups, members of the media, military veterans, and ex-government whistleblowers, has authored an open letter calling for the immediate release of U.S. Army veteran Courtney Williams, who has been arrested and charged under the Espionage Act of 1917 for allegedly disclosing classified information when she spoke out against gender discrimination and sexual harassment in the U.S. military. 

The coalition, led by civil liberties organization Defending Rights & Dissent and including PEN America, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the Freedom of the Press Foundation, as well as U.S. government whistleblowers including Thomas Drake, Terry Albury, and John Kiriakou, former military and intelligence professionals such as Matthew Hoh and Sarah G. Wilton, CDR, USNR (Ret.), and journalists like Chris Hedges and Drop Site News editor Nausicaa Renner, calls for the charges against Williams to be dropped and for urgent reform of the law used against her:

“Patriotic individuals who alert the public to government wrongdoing are whistleblowers, not spies. The charges against Williams should be dropped. And we call on Congress to pass the Daniel Ellsberg Press Freedom and Whistleblower Protect Act, to amend the Espionage Act to prevent its use against public interest disclosures like this one.”

The indictment is a clear effort to retaliate against Williams for speaking out about the abuses she endured as a contractor working on the U.S. Army base at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Williams spoke to investigative journalist Seth Harp for his shocking expose of criminality and corruption at the base, The Fort Bragg Cartel. 

Chip Gibbons, Policy Director for Defending Rights & Dissent, said

“Any indictment of a journalist’s source or a whistleblower is an affront to the First Amendment. What makes this all the more chilling is that Courtney Williams spoke on the record to investigative reporter Seth Harp about sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the U.S. military. Based on unclear reasoning, the government then engaged in intrusive surveillance of her communications with Harp–including at least call records and contents of text messages. As we have long warned, the Espionage Act enables the surveillance of journalists even when they are allegedly not the target of a criminal investigation. This flimsy indictment appears to be based mostly on speculation, further creating the inference that this is retaliation against a public critic of the U.S. military and an attempt to surveil a reporter. Congress must pass the Daniel Ellsberg Press Freedom and Whistleblower Protection Act immediately.”

Jeffrey Sterling, a former CIA employee who was himself charged under the Espionage Act, said, 

“Bad history continues to repeat itself. Once again, the Espionage Act is being used to retaliate against a whistleblower for allegedly leaking classified information to a journalist. Courtney Williams blew the whistle on sex discrimination in the military, which is clearly an issue of public interest. Having the bravery to expose illegal practices in the military should be championed, not persecuted. For the sake of journalists, whistleblowers, and our Constitutional rights, Congress needs to pass the Daniel Ellsberg Whistleblower and Press Freedom Act and reverse a disturbing trend that must come to an end.” 

The Daniel Ellsberg Act, introduced by Rep. Rashida Tlaib last month, would reform the Espionage Act to include a public interest defense, allowing defendants to explain their motives in court. As currently written, the Espionage Act treats conscientious whistleblowers the same as treasonous spies who sell secrets to a foreign power. 

Defending Rights & Dissent and Drop Site News have also released a petition for members of the public to use to speak out for Courtney Williams and urge the DOJ to drop all charges against her.

Read the full statement and list of signatories here (PDF).