Fight goes to Capitol — Apple v Federal Bureau of Investigation

Apple filed a motion to vacate the California magistrate judge’s order on Thursday, arguing that being forced to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation break into the iPhone used by Farook would violate the company’s First and Fifth Amendment rights, and impose an undue burden.

The Justice Department is proposing an unprecedented and “boundless interpretation” of the law that, if left unchecked, could bring disastrous repercussions, the company warned in a memo submitted to Magistrate Sheri Pym in California that aggressively challenges policy justifications put forward by the Obama administration. Analysts at Piper Jaffray said a survey they commissioned last week found the controversy wasn’t hurting the way most Americans think about Apple or its products. “If they went out of their way to destroy the other phones, there’s a pretty good chance there may not be anything of value”, said Jarrod Burguan, San Bernardino’s police chief.

Twitter also will sign a brief in support of Apple, Twitter said. “It would also set a precedent that I believe many people in America would be offended by”.

He told the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence that federal prosecutors simply want any potential evidence that may be on the iPhone used by one of the shooters in the December massacre in San Bernardino, California that left 14 people dead and 22 others wounded.

Comey reiterated to lawmakers Thursday that the government owed it to victims’ families to conduct a thorough investigation.

Its stance has been widely supported by the tech industry, including Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and Twitter.

Hurd will serve as a key voice as Congress is increasingly pressured to step in and pass legislation to settle this dispute. As part of the All Writs Act, Apple says, the government needs to prove there’s no possible way government investigators can crack the iPhone’s encryption without Apple’s help.

Even so, the director agreed with Apple’s claim that the outcome may have broader consequences.

The legal wrangling over a federal court order requiring Apple to help law enforcement break into an iPhone intensified yesterday, with the company filing its formal response and asking the court to drop its demand. “While the result may only affect this phone, the precedent may be there for many others”, Schiff said during questioning.

While stressing that Apple has no intention of aiding terrorists, CEO Tim Cook firmly rejected the request, arguing that creating such an OS would ultimately harm the country.