Citizens Against UFO Secrecy
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🏢 Organization
Contents 6
| Type | Organization |
|---|---|
| Also known as | CAUS |
| On the Timeline | 5 events, 1978–1999 |
Citizens Against UFO Secrecy (CAUS) was an American nonprofit group, formed in 1977, that used the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the courts to try to force U.S. government agencies to release classified information about UFOs. Lawyer Peter Gersten was its leading figure.[1]
Aims
CAUS said it believed that people were interacting with a non-human intelligence and that government secrecy on the subject should be ended through the judicial process.[1][2]
CIA and NSA lawsuits
In 1977 Gersten sued the Central Intelligence Agency under FOIA; in 1979 the CIA released more than 900 pages of UFO-related documents. In 1980 he sued the National Security Agency on behalf of CAUS. On 18 November 1980 a judge refused to order the release of the NSA's UFO records after reviewing a classified NSA affidavit explaining why they had to stay secret. The case was widely reported and appealed.[1]
Later activities
In 1983 CAUS filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in federal court in Washington, D.C., demanding that the government produce any alien bodies it held; filer Larry Bryant told reporters, "We want the bodies." The group also sued the governor of Virginia over UFO records, without success.[1]
End
CAUS later became inactive and its nonprofit status was revoked.[1]
On the UAP Timeline
- State Department "no records" reply (1978) (19 January 1978) — The State Department says it has no UAP records; a requester sends it one of its own documents.
- CAUS lawsuit and the CIA UFO papers (15 December 1978) — Researchers claim the CIA ran secret emergency UAP studies during sighting waves.
- NORAD's $294,157 search fee (September 1979) — NORAD says a search for UAP tracking data would cost $294,157.
- NSA Yeates affidavits (1980) (18 November 1980) — In a lawsuit, the NSA files a public and a secret affidavit about its UAP records.
- CAUS Phoenix Lights lawsuit (22 January 1999) — A civilian group sues for records on the Phoenix Lights.
References
- Citizens Against UFO Secrecy — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- CAUS mission statement (archived 2004) · web.archive.org · archived copy
This page was last edited on 29 October 2026. Articles are written in our own words from the sources listed under References; disputed claims are attributed to the people who made them.
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