ACLU Files Lawsuit for Release of DOJ Memo on U.S. Military Strikes on Drug-Carrying Boats
The ACLU, ACLU Foundation, and Center for Constitutional Rights have filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit demanding the immediate release of a Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) memo. This memo reportedly outlines the legal justification for the U.S. military's authority to conduct lethal strikes on drug-carrying boats, a subject that has raised significant controversy.
The lawsuit names the Department of Justice (including the OLC), the Department of State, and the Department of Defense—recently renamed the Department of War—as defendants. The suit focuses on the legal opinion addressing the military's authority to carry out such lethal strikes.
The first publicly acknowledged strike took place on September 2, 2025, in the Caribbean Sea. Subsequently, a second missile strike was reported to have killed two survivors from the initial attack. The government maintains these strikes were lawful.
The ACLU challenges these actions as violations of both domestic and international law, arguing that non-lethal measures should be preferred before resorting to lethal force. They emphasize that releasing the memo is essential to enable informed public debate regarding these unprecedented military strikes.
Former President Donald Trump had previously suggested making video footage of the strikes public but later deferred the decision to War Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to Associated Press reports.
