Court Bars US Government From Searching Devices Seized From Journalist

A US federal judge, on Wednesday, ruled that government officials cannot search electronic devices seized by the FBI from a Washington Post journalist last week.

In the ruling, US Magistrate Judge William Porter said materials taken from reporter Hannah Natanson must not be reviewed while litigation over the search of her home remained pending.

“The government must preserve but must not review any of the materials that law enforcement seized… until the Court authorises review of the materials by further order,” Porter wrote.

Natanson, who covers the US federal government, has reported extensively on job cuts in Washington following President Donald Trump’s return to office at the start of his second term.

According to The Washington Post, FBI agents seized Natanson’s work laptop during a raid on her Virginia home on January 14, alongside her personal laptop, mobile phone and watch.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi said the search was part of an investigation into an alleged Pentagon leak, as the administration has tightened media restrictions since Trump took office.

Although FBI agents reportedly told Natanson that she is not the target of the investigation, press freedom advocates have raised concerns that the move could set a dangerous precedent and chill journalism in the United States.

In a statement, The Washington Post condemned the seizure, describing it as an attack on press freedom.

“The seizure of our reporter’s confidential newsgathering materials chills speech, cripples reporting, and inflicts irreparable harm every day the government keeps its hands on these materials,” the newspaper said.

It added that it had asked the court to order the immediate return of all seized materials and block their use in the investigation.

“Anything less would license future newsroom raids and normalise censorship by search warrant,” the statement said.