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George W. Croner, Esq.

George W. Croner, a Senior Fellow at FPRI, is a 1975 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy (with distinction) and a 1980 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School (with honors).

From 1984 through 1988, while holding the highest security clearance authorized by the U.S. government (TS/SCI), Mr. Croner served in the Operations Division of the Office of General Counsel at the National Security Agency (NSA) which had legal oversight responsibility for NSA’s signals intelligence (SIGINT) operations, including compliance with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). During this same period, Mr. Croner also was NSA’s principal litigation counsel and, in that capacity, represented NSA’s interests in a variety of litigation matters implicating the security interests of NSA’s SIGINT operations including: Westmoreland v. CBS (the defamation lawsuit brought by General William Westmoreland that raised issues concerning the intelligence information used to assess North Vietnamese troop strength during the Vietnam War); U.S. v. John Walker (espionage prosecution); U.S. v. Jerry Whitworth (espionage prosecution); U.S. v. Wu-tai Chin (espionage prosecution); and U.S. v. Ronald Pelton (espionage prosecution). The Pelton case, in particular, involved some of NSA’s then-most sensitive SIGINT collection programs. Mr. Croner was awarded a Defense Meritorious Service Medal (DMSM) for his work in connection with these espi-onage prosecutions.

In addition to these litigation matters, Mr. Croner also served as the NSA representative to the White House interagency group assembled to review and, where possible, declassify intelligence information associated with the Iran-Contra investigation. In this capacity he assisted the Tower Commission, congressional intelligence committees, and the Independent Counsel regarding security matters related to the use and understanding of NSA intelligence product.

For his efforts with the interagency group, Mr. Croner received a letter of appreciation from President Ronald Reagan, and was awarded a second DMSM.

Following his service with NSA, Mr. Croner spent 28 years in the private practice of law but, after leaving NSA, he maintained his interest in NSA and inelectronic surveillance as it relates to the collection of foreign intelligence information.

His work and publications regarding FISA, signals intelligence and foreign intelligence collection have appeared on multiple media platforms, and he is a member of the The Association of Former Intelligence Officers.

Programs by George W. Croner, Esq..

Active

On August 8, 2022, a new chapter was written in the history of American law enforcement when the FBI executed a search warrant at the Florida residence of the 45th President of the United States in an effort to recover classified national security do...

Program Number
32268
Program Date
2022-12-12
Category
Business Organizations & ContractsCorporate and Securities LawElection, Campaign & Political LawFederal CourtsFlorida EligibleGovernment Claims & Military LawPrivacy and Data Security
State
CaliforniaColoradoFloridaGeorgiaNew JerseyNew YorkTexas Self Study
Program Credits
Areas of Professional Practice:1.5 Credit
Total Credits
CLE Credit: 1.5

Electronic surveillance is one of the most important foreign intelligence collection tools available to the U.S. government. Correspondingly, the ability to surveil constitutes one of those activities most susceptible to abuse by a government against...

Program Number
32267
Program Date
2022-11-30
Category
Business Organizations & ContractsComputer, Internet & E-Commerce LawCorporate and Securities LawCybersecurityFederal CourtsFlorida EligibleGovernment Claims & Military LawInternational LawInternational Law & Global TradeRansomware
State
CaliforniaColoradoFloridaGeorgiaNew JerseyNew YorkTexas Self Study
Program Credits
Areas of Professional Practice:2 Credit
Total Credits
CLE Credit: 2