Assange Case, If It Exists, Can’t Be Made Public, U.S. Argues

The news media has no legal right to learn whether WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was charged in a sealed proceeding, despite an inadvertent filing in an unrelated case that said the Justice Department has accused him of wrongdoing, the U.S. said.

The Justice Department responded Nov. 26 to a Nov. 16 lawsuit by the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press, which seeks access to any criminal complaint, indictment or other charging documents relating to Assange.

Prosecutors said that if a record of charges isn’t publicly available, that means the person hasn’t been charged or the case is under ...