alt Hacker News> What is the legal basis for releasing the someone's private files and communications?
An act of congress, for one.
Also, AFAIK, federal privacy generally ends at death, as does criminal liability; so releasing government files from a federal investigation after death of the subject is generally within the realm of acceptable conduct.
Yes, I forgot about that major part of the story! Still, acts of Congress can't violate Consitutional rights.
It seems unlikely you lose all rights when you die or it would be chaos - imagine all the secrets people die with that affect everyone they know. An integral part of every estate plan would be incinerating records. Wills do have real power.