101 new FOIA court documents, plus case descriptions

We have added 101 documents from 7 FOIA cases filed between May 25, 2014 and May 31, 2014. Note that there can be delays between the date a case is filed and when it shows up on PACER. If there are filings from this period that have yet to be posted on PACER, this FOIA Project list may not be complete.

Click on a case title below to view details for that case, including links to the associated docket and complaint documents.

1. SCHULTE et al v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (filed May 27, 2014)
   Fred Schulte, an investigative reporter for the Center for Public Integrity, submitted a FOIA request to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services concerning the effects of electronic health records and other digital billing systems on medical coding. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request, but after hearing nothing more before the statutory time limit expired, Schulte filed suit.
   Issues: improper withholding, disclosure of records, attorney’s fees
2. Lemmonds v. Federal Bureau of Investigation (filed May 28, 2014)
   Gabriel Lemmonds submitted a FOIA request to the FBI for all records about himself. The agency told Lemmonds it had no records and Lemmonds appealed the denial to the Office of Information Policy. OIP upheld the FBI’s denial and Lemmonds filed suit.
   Issues: conduct adequate search, disclosure of all responsive records
3. DODSON v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (filed May 28, 2014)
   John Dodson, an employee of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms who revealed alleged misconduct during the agency’s Fast and Furious operation, made three FOIA requests to the agency for emails to or from several named employees and records referring to himself as a whistleblower. The agency acknowledged receipt of the requests and indicated that its search of the Office of the Associate Attorney General had failed to yield any responsive records and that the agency was closing one of Dodson’s requests as a result. However, although BATF provided Dodson updates on the progress of his other two requests, after the agency failed to respond within the statutory time limit, Dodson filed suit.
   Issues: conduct adequate search, disclosure of non-exempt records by date certain, production of Vaughn index, attorney’s fees
4. Mitchell v. United States Securities and Exchange Commission (filed May 28, 2014)
   Mark Mitchell, a reporter for the online publication DeepCapture, submitted 26 FOIA requests to the Securities and Exchange Commission for records of various administrative proceedings. The agency responded to several by indicating that it had found no records or was withholding records under Exemption 7(A) (interference with ongoing investigation or proceeding). He filed administrative appeals for the requests to which the agency responded. However, the agency failed to respond to the majority of Mitchell’s requests and he finally filed suit.
   Issues: improper withholding, conduct adequate search, disclosure of all responsive records, attorney’s fees
5. The New York Times Company et al v. United States Department of Justice (filed May 28, 2014)
   New York Times reporter Charlie Savage submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Justice for the full classified version of the Joint IG Report on the government’s surveillance activities under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The agency denied the request and Savage appealed to the Office of Information Policy. The appeal is still pending. Savage then submitted a second FOIA request to the Department of Justice for all Inspector Generals Surveillance Reports since September 2001. The agency denied the request, indicating the reports were properly classified. Savage appealed the denial to OIP, but OIP had not yet responded when the New York Times filed suit.
   Issues: improper withholding, conduct adequate search, disclosure of responsive records, attorney’s fees
6. The New York Times Company et al v. United States Department of Justice (filed May 28, 2014)
   New York Times reporter Charlie Savage submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Justice for records sent to the Attorney General or Deputy Attorney General concerning the Durham Investigation into the destruction of CIA videotapes of interrogation sessions. Savage asked for expedited processing. Savage then sent a second FOIA request for all FBI records summarizing interviews conducted as part of the Durham Investigation. Savage asked for expedited processing. The FBI denied Savage’s request for expedited processing, but the Office of Information Policy granted his expedited processing request on appeal. However, after the agency failed to provide any substantive response to either request, the New York Times filed suit.
   Issues: improper withholding, conduct adequate search, disclosure of records within 20 days of court order, attorney’s fees
7. LEOPOLD v. NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY (filed May 29, 2014)
   Jason Leopold, an investigative reporter, submitted a request to the National Security Agency for any emails written by Edward Snowden in which he contacted agency officials about his concerns about NSA programs. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request, but after it failed to respond before the expiration of the statutory time limit, Leopold filed suit.
   Issues: improper withholding, grant fee waiver, immediate disclosure of all non-exempt responsive records, attorney’s fees