| Summary/Abstract |
Although post-2006 executive branch efforts to discourage unauthorized disclosures have been politically contentious, historical cases illustrate that the Espionage Act of 1917 has broad utility in prosecuting unauthorized information transfer, also known as “leaking.” Multiple United States federal courts, including the Supreme Court, have consistently upheld the Espionage Act and worked to clarify the statute through judicial interpretation. Late 1930s and early 1940s decisions, including the only Supreme Court hearing on the Espionage Act of 1917, re-affirmed the logic and legality of the Act. The 1941 Supreme Court decision, Gorin v. United States (1941), formed the primary legal precedent for the case of Rosen v. United States (2006), which began the recent U.S. government legal campaign to prosecute the unauthorized release of sensitive defense related information. Specifically, the 1930s cases established that the intent of the government employee, the “sensitivity” of the material transferred, or the status of the recipient were not mitigating factors.
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