SANTA FE FOREST COALITION v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE and 15 other new FOIA lawsuits

We have added 84 documents from 16 FOIA cases filed between February 18, 2024 and February 24, 2024. 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. SANTA FE FOREST COALITION v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE (filed Feb 19, 2024)
   Santa Fe Forest Coalition submitted a FOIA request to U.S. Forest Service for records concerning the Santa Fe Mountains Landscape Resiliency Project. The Coalition also requested expedited processing. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, the Coalition files suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Adequacy – Search
2. John M. Manley v. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (filed Feb 21, 2024)
   John Manley, an immigration attorney, submitted a FOIA request to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for records concerning policies and practices regarding CBP’s system for enforcing penalties against alleged SENTRI and NEXUS lane violators. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Manley filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Vaughn index, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
3. Jesus Eric Carasco v. Shannon D. Dicus et al (filed Feb 20, 2024)
   Jesus Eric Carasco tried to get records from a state sheriff. This is not a FOIA request
   Issues: FOIA not mentioned
4. FoiaConsciousness.com LLC v. National Archives & Records Administration et al (filed Feb 20, 2024)
   FOIAConsciousness.com submitted a FOIA request to the National Archives and Records Administration and the Dallas County Historical Foundation to end restrictions on the public access to the Zapruder film of the Kennedy assassination. FOIAconsciousness.com requested a copy of Moses Weitzman’s copy of the Zapruder film, currently held in the NARA facility in Baltimore. NARA told FOIAConsciousness.com that it could not disclose the film without the permission of the Dallas County Historical Foundation. NARA insisted that the Dallas County Historical Foundation had a copyright that prevented it from disclosing the Zapruder film publicly. FOIAConsciousness.com submitted a FOIA request for the Zapruder film, which NARA denied under Exemption 3. FOIAConsciousness.com filed an administrative appeal, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, FOIAConsciousness.com filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
5. Van Der Hout LLP v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security et al (filed Feb 23, 2024)
   Van Der Hout LLP, an immigration law firm, submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State for records concerning a Memorandum of Understanding between the United States and Israel concerning immigration waivers. VDH also requested a fee waiver. The agencies acknowledged receipt of the requests but after hearing nothing further from the agencies, VDH filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Fees, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
6. POWER THE FUTURE v. DEPARTMENT OF STATE (filed Feb 19, 2024)
   Power the Future submitted a FOIA request to the Department of State for records concerning correspondence of four State officials in the Office of the Special Envoy on Climate Change, with a list of keywords. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Power the Future filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
7. KEZERASHVILI v. U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION (filed Feb 20, 2024)
   David Kezerashivili, a United Kingdom citizen, submitted a FOIA request to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for records concerning the decision to deny his B-2 Visa application to work in the United States. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Kezerashivili filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
8. LEOPOLD et al v. FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION et al (filed Feb 20, 2024)
   Journalist Jason Leopold submitted a FOIA request to the FBI for records concerning its investigation of President Biden’s handling of classified documents. Leopold also requested expedited processing. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Leopold filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
9. POWER THE FUTURE v. DEPARTMENT OF STATE (filed Feb 20, 2024)
   Power the Future submitted a FOIA request to the Department of State for records concerning non-government staff allowed to work for the Office of the Special Envoy on Climate Change. Power the Future also requested a fee waiver. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Power the Future filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
10. KEZERASHVILI v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE (filed Feb 20, 2024)
    David Kezerashvili, a citizen of the United Kingdom, submitted a FOIA request to the Department of State for records concerning the decision made by U.S. Customs and Border Protection to deny his B-2 visa to work in the United States. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Kezerashvili filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
11. BADER FAMILY FOUNDATION v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR et al (filed Feb 23, 2024)
    Bader Family Foundation submitted a FOIA request to U.S. National Park Service for records concerning emails about whether the William Penn statute should be removed from Welcome Park. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency told the Bader Foundation that it did not have many of the records and to conduct searches of other parts of the request it would need further information on keywords. The Bader Foundation filed an administrative appeal. After hearing nothing further from the agency, the Bader Foundation filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
12. PEARCE v. DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (filed Feb 20, 2024)
    Reba Pearce, an attorney with the Army, submitted FOIA requests to the Department of Army for records concerning her termination while on maternity leave. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency denied the request under Exemption 6 (invasion of privacy) and Exemption 7(C) (invasion of privacy concerning law enforcement records). Pearce filed an administrative appeal. The Army denied the appeal. Pearce then filed suit.
    Issues: Litigation – Attorney’s fees
13. Reed v. United States Attorney Office District of Minnesota (filed Feb 20, 2024)
    Tony Reed submitted a FOIA request to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota for records about his case. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Reed filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit
14. Barnett v. United States Secret Service et al (filed Feb 23, 2024)
    Christopher Barnett submitted FOIA requests to U.S. Secret Service for records concerning allegedly exculpatory information about his conviction. The agency acknowledged receipt of the requests but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Barnett filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit
15. Innovation Law Lab v. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (filed Feb 21, 2024)
    Innovation Law Lab submitted a FOIA request to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for records concerning for the Credible Fear Procedures Manual. ILL also requested expedited processing. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency denied ILL’s request for expedited processing. ILL filed an administrative appeal of the denial but after hearing nothing further from the agency, ILL filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Expedited processing, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
16. Chiluvuri v. U.S. National Science Foundation (filed Feb 20, 2024)
    Raju Chiluvuri submitted three FOIA requests to U.S. National Science Foundation for records concerning pitch proposals The agency acknowledged receipt of the requests. After hearing nothing further from the agency, Chiluvuri filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees