Dear Mr. Amarel,

Please note that this Office sent the attached response letter on December 4, 2017, advising you that your request was misdirected to the Criminal Division and was routed to the Executive Office for United States Attorneys (EOUSA). Please contact EOUSA for the status of your request.

Thank you,

FOIA/PA Unit
Criminal Division
U.S. Department of Justice

Your request for records under the Freedom of Information Act/Privacy Act has been processed.  This letter constitutes a reply from the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, the official record-keeper for all records located in this office and the various United States Attorneys’ Office.  To provide you with the greatest degree of access authorized by the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act, we have considered your request in light of the provisions of both statutes.
All of the records you seek are being made available to you.  We have processed your request under the Freedom of Information Act and are making all records required to be released, or considered appropriate for release as a matter of discretion, available to you.
[ X ]       After reviewing all the documents, we have determined that we can make a full release.  A fee is being assessed for the last 3 hours of the 5 hours' total search time.  There is no copying fee.  The total fee, therefore, is $120.
There were 16 responsive e-mails.  Most of the requested e-mails consist of an e-mailed Reuters newsletter to former U.S. Attorney Bharara that is probably available from Reuters for a fee.  Two of the e-mails are e-mails you sent to U.S. Attorney Bharara.  Please select one of the options below:
[   ]       I would like to receive all 16 and agree to pay $120 for 3 hours of search time.
[   ]       I do not wish to receive the records and do not wish to pay the $120 in search fees.
We will act on your response as soon as we receive it, will not require advance payment of any search fees you agree to pay, and will instead bill you after releasing the records.  If you agree to pay the fees and receive the records, they will be made available to you via FOIAOnline or, if necessary, as attachments to one or more conventional e-mails.

Dear Mr. Amarel,

Please note that this Office sent the attached response letter on December 4, 2017, advising you that your request was misdirected to the Criminal Division and was routed to the Executive Office for United States Attorneys (EOUSA). Please contact EOUSA for the status
of your request.

Thank you,

FOIA/PA Unit
Criminal Division
U.S. Department of Justice

Dear Mr. Amarel:

Thank you for contacting the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS).
OGIS is the Federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Ombudsman office.
Individuals who have filed a FOIA request with any Federal agency may
request OGIS’s assistance in resolving a dispute at any point in the FOIA
process. OGIS does not take sides in a dispute, nor does it advocate on
behalf of a requester or agency. The office promotes a fair FOIA process
and works with parties to reach a mutually agreeable resolution. OGIS staff
also provide ombuds services, which includes providing general information
about the FOIA process and handling general complaints and observations
regarding FOIA.

We carefully reviewed your submission and determined you sent us
correspondence intended for the Department of Justice (DOJ), Criminal
Division - the office to which you submitted your FOIA request. If you have
not done so already, we recommend that you contact the Criminal Division
directly to inquire about the status of your request. Below, we provided
the component's contact information:

Amanda Marchand Jones, Chief
FOIA/PA Unit
Criminal Division
Department of Justice
Suite 1127, Keeney Building
Washington, DC 20530-0001
Fax: 202-514-6117
Email: crm.foia@usdoj.gov

We hope you find this information useful. At this time, OGIS can offer no
further assistance and we consider this matter closed.. If you have
questions or concerns that we have not addressed, please contact us again.

Best regards,
The OGIS Staff
--
*OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT INFORMATION SERVICES*
National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Road (OGIS)
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Email: ogis@nara.gov
Phone: 202-741-5770 <(202)%20741-5770>
Fax: 202-741-5769
Website: *archives.gov/ogis <http://archives.gov/ogis>*
Blog: http://foia.blogs.archives.gov/

The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) received your e-mail.

Please be advised that your e-mail was sent to the wrong agency and below refers to EOUSA.

Thanks.

Please be advised that the Executive Office for U.S. Attorney information regarding Freedom of Information Act can be located at https://www.justice.gov/usao/resources/making-foia-request

We have received your status inquiry of July 10, 2019.  We also received a telephone inquiry from a representative of MuckRock on your behalf on or about July 11, 2019, in which we informed that person that we have 16 responsive e-mails ready for release to you.

Your request for records under the Freedom of Information Act/Privacy Act has been processed.  This letter constitutes a reply from the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, the official record-keeper for all records located in this office and the various United States Attorneys.
To provide you with the greatest degree of access authorized by the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act, we have considered your request in light of the provisions of both statutes.
The records you seek are located in a Privacy Act system of records that, in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Attorney General, is exempt from the access provisions of the Privacy Act.  28 CFR § 16.81.  We have also processed your request under the Freedom of Information Act and are making all records required to be released, or considered appropriate for release as a matter of discretion, available to you.  This letter is a [ ] full release [ X ] partial release [   ] full withholding.

Enclosed please find:
27  records are being released in full (RIF);
0    page(s) are being released in part (RIP);
2   records, one 2 pages in length and one 14 pages in length, are withheld in full (WIF). The redacted/withheld documents were reviewed to determine if any information could be segregated for release. The two withheld records were withheld based on the following FOIA exemptions: 2 pages -- Exemption (b)(6); 14 pages -- Exemption (b)(5), (b)(7)(A), and (b)(7)(E).  An explanation of the FOIA exemptions is attached for your reference.
In our June 4, 2019 correspondence to you, we advised that we were prepared to make a full release of 16 e-mails upon your agreement to pay $120 in search fees beyond the initial two hours of free search time.  That count was mistakenly based on a partial review of the records received from the United States Attorney's Office.  Upon receiving a status inquiry from MuckRock on your behalf in July 2019, we copied that fee request letter to you a second time in our July 16, 2019 correspondence and again sought your agreement to pay $120.  You have responded by asking us to release the 16 e-mails discussed in the June 2019 fee request letter, as copied in July 2019, and we construe that as your agreement to pay the $120 in search fees.  Please remit a check in that amount, payable to "United States Treasury."

If you are not satisfied with my response to this request, you may administratively appeal by writing to the Director, Office of Information Policy (OIP), United States Department of Justice, Suite 11050, 1425 New York Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20530-0001, or you may submit an appeal through OIP's FOIAonline portal by creating an account on the following web site: https://foiaonline.regulations.gov/foia/action/public/home.  Your appeal must be postmarked or electronically transmitted within ninety (90) days of the date of my response to your request. If you submit your appeal by mail, both the letter and the envelope should be clearly marked “Freedom of Information Act Appeal.” (https://foiaonline.regulations.gov/foia/action/public/home)
You may contact our FOIA Public Liaison at the Executive Office for United States Attorneys (EOUSA) for any further assistance and to discuss any aspect of your request.  The contact information for EOUSA is 175 N Street, NE, Suite 5.400, Washington, DC 20530; telephone at 202-252-6020; or facsimile 202-252-6048.  Additionally, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services they offer. The contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001; e-mail at ogis@nara.gov; telephone at 202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769. (mailto:ogis@nara.gov)

EOUSA-2018-002382 has been processed with the following final disposition: Partial Grant/Partial Denial.
Given the nature of this request, some records are only being released to you as the requester. If you have an account in FOIAonline, you may access those records by . Otherwise, those responsive records will be sent via the method agreed upon with the FOIA processor. logging into FOIAonline (https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/home)

EOUSA-2018-002382 has been processed with the following final disposition: Partial Grant/Partial Denial.
Given the nature of this request, some records are only being released to you as the requester. If you have an account in FOIAonline, you may access those records by . Otherwise, those responsive records will be sent via the method agreed upon with the FOIA processor. logging into FOIAonline (https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/home)