Fed court revives rendition lawsuit against Boeing

SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal appeals court has ruled that a subsidiary of Chicago-based Boeing can be sued for allegedly flying terrorism suspects to secret prisons to be tortured as part of the CIA's "extraordinary rendition" program.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in California ruled Tuesday that a lower court judge wrongly dismissed the lawsuit after the government asserted the case was a "state secret" that would harm national security.

The appeals court says the five prisoners suing San Jose-based Jeppesen Dataplan Inc. can try to prove their case without top-secret information that legitimately needs protection from disclosure.