By Bill Mears, CNN Supreme Court Producer
A divided Supreme Court ruled Wednesday against a California pilot who sued after the federal government publicly revealed his HIV status.
In a 5-3 ruling, the high court decided Stanmore Cooper’s claims of mental and emotional distress are not covered under the Privacy Act.
“The Privacy Act does not unequivocally authorize damages for mental or emotional distress and therefore does not waive the government’s sovereign immunity for such harms,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the conservative majority.
Three liberal justices dissented, while a fourth — former Solicitor General Elena Kagan — did not participate.
Cooper became a licensed recreational pilot in 1964, but two decades later, the San Francisco man was diagnosed with the HIV virus. As his condition worsened over time, he let his private pilot’s certificate and his airman medical certificate lapse.
In 1996, Cooper applied for long-term disability with the Social Security Administration.
“I was in bad shape, I didn’t have long to live,” he told CNN last year. But his health improved thanks to a cocktail of anti-retroviral therapy. He went back to work and wanted to fly again.
“I found out they were issuing medicals (exemptions) and I reapplied” to the Federal Aviation Administration “without revealing my HIV status,” he said. “Big mistake.”
He received his new pilot’s certificate but, unknown to him, a joint local-federal initiative called Operation Safe Pilot was launched in 2002. Using a spreadsheet, the agencies shared and compared the names and personal data of about 45,000 pilots in Northern California, looking for potentially medically unfit individuals who were also receiving federal benefits.
Cooper was among four dozen or so pilots tagged as a “person of interest.” When confronted by government agents, he admitted to a misdemeanor charge of filing a false report.
He was sentenced to probation and fined, and his pilot’s certificate was revoked. The retired business executive’s name was listed in a federal press release and later, through his prosecution, Cooper’s medical history suddenly was a matter of public record.
“I had been able to control those (with) whom I shared my information about my HIV status, limited to some co-workers, family, and close friends,” he said “And suddenly that was out of my control.”
more
Supreme Court Rejects Damage Claim in HIV Privacy Case | FOX8.com
A divided Supreme Court ruled Wednesday against a California pilot who sued after the federal government publicly revealed his HIV status.
In a 5-3 ruling, the high court decided Stanmore Cooper’s claims of mental and emotional distress are not covered under the Privacy Act.
“The Privacy Act does not unequivocally authorize damages for mental or emotional distress and therefore does not waive the government’s sovereign immunity for such harms,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the conservative majority.
Three liberal justices dissented, while a fourth — former Solicitor General Elena Kagan — did not participate.
Cooper became a licensed recreational pilot in 1964, but two decades later, the San Francisco man was diagnosed with the HIV virus. As his condition worsened over time, he let his private pilot’s certificate and his airman medical certificate lapse.
In 1996, Cooper applied for long-term disability with the Social Security Administration.
“I was in bad shape, I didn’t have long to live,” he told CNN last year. But his health improved thanks to a cocktail of anti-retroviral therapy. He went back to work and wanted to fly again.
“I found out they were issuing medicals (exemptions) and I reapplied” to the Federal Aviation Administration “without revealing my HIV status,” he said. “Big mistake.”
He received his new pilot’s certificate but, unknown to him, a joint local-federal initiative called Operation Safe Pilot was launched in 2002. Using a spreadsheet, the agencies shared and compared the names and personal data of about 45,000 pilots in Northern California, looking for potentially medically unfit individuals who were also receiving federal benefits.
Cooper was among four dozen or so pilots tagged as a “person of interest.” When confronted by government agents, he admitted to a misdemeanor charge of filing a false report.
He was sentenced to probation and fined, and his pilot’s certificate was revoked. The retired business executive’s name was listed in a federal press release and later, through his prosecution, Cooper’s medical history suddenly was a matter of public record.
“I had been able to control those (with) whom I shared my information about my HIV status, limited to some co-workers, family, and close friends,” he said “And suddenly that was out of my control.”
more
Supreme Court Rejects Damage Claim in HIV Privacy Case | FOX8.com