August 25, 1955 DOJ memo: 'Wrestling: Recommendation for Criminal Prosecution'

Dear Mr. Bixenspan,

Thank you for submitting your Freedom of Information Act/Privacy Act
request to the National Archives and Records Administration.

Due to the nature of your request, we have forwarded your request (received
in our office on November 28, 2016) to our Office of Research Services,
Special Access and FOIA staff, for appropriate handling. You will be
assigned a new tracking number by that office within the next 20 business
days. If you would like to follow up with that office directly please
contact them at specialaccess_FOIA@nara.gov.

For your reference, your original submission follows.

Thank you for contacting the National Archives and please visit our website
at www.archives.gov/foia for further information.

Please also visit our main website, www.archives.gov, to learn more about
the many exciting resources we offer the public.

Sincerely,

Jodi L. Foor

Deputy Freedom of Information Act Officer/Archivist

National Archives and Records Administration

Office of General Counsel

College Park, MD

301-837-2099

Jodi.Foor@nara.gov

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <requests@muckrock.com>
Date: Fri, Nov 25, 2016 at 2:16 PM
Subject: Freedom of Information Request: August 25, 1955 DOJ memo:
'Wrestling: Recommendation for Criminal Prosecution'
To: foia@nara.gov

November 25, 2016
National Archives and Records Administration
FOIA Officer
National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Road, Room 3110
College Park, MD 20740

To Whom It May Concern:

This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act and should be
fulfilled digitally by email attachment. I should be categorized as a media
requester. This request is part of my reporting process, and I will use the
materials in my coverage (for various outlets including VICE, LawNewz, MEL
Magazine, Wrestling Observer, Fighting Spirit Magazine, and Death & Taxes)
of news in the public interest.

I hereby request the following records:

"Wrestling: Recommendation for Criminal Prosecution" a 90 page memorandum
sent on August 25, 1955 within the Department of Justice and possible the
FBI as well. My understanding is that this and everything else from the DOH
and FBI's professional wrestling antitrust investigation is contained
within the following files:

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1595
Series
Start 8/End 9

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1595
Series
Start 10/End 10

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1596
Series
Start 17/End 17

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1596
Series
Start 18/End 18

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1596
Series
Start 16/End 16

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1596
Series
Start 15/End 15

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1597
Series
Start 19/End 19

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1597
Series
Start 21/End 21

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1596
Series
Start 12/End 14

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1596
Series
Start 11/End 11

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1597
Series
Start 22/End 22

Accession # 60-64-0580
Box # 1597
Series
Start 20/End 20

Accession # 60-69-2219
Box # 333
Series
Start 23/End 23

Accession # 60-69-2219
Box # 333
Series
Start 24/End 24

Accession # 60-70-4771
Box # 789
Section
Start 1/End 2

Accession # 60-71-6389
Box # 410
Section
Start 3/End 3

Accession # 60-74-0343
Box #68
unknown
Start unknown/End unknown

Accession # 60-79-0167
Box #35
unknown
Start unknown/End unknown

I believed that this memo has been produced (without redactions) for FOIA
requests before, so there should be a digital copy, as well. The subsequent
action led to a publicly filed consent decree that included the names of
all relevant parties, so no privacy redactions should be necessary.

For anything found but not produced, please send a proper Vaughn Index.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and
this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform
me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer
the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or
CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I
look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business
days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,
David Bixenspan

------
Filed via MuckRock.com
E-mail (Preferred): requests@muckrock.com

For mailed responses, please address (see note):
MuckRock
DEPT MR 30292
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA 02144-2516

PLEASE NOTE: This request is not filed by a MuckRock staff member, but is
being sent through MuckRock by the above in order to better track, share,
and manage public records requests. Also note that improperly addressed
(i.e., with the requester's name rather than "MuckRock News" and the
department number) requests might be returned as undeliverable.
------

Reply to RDT2 17-08934HJM

FOIA Case File # 51716

December 20, 2016

David Bixenspan

MuckRock

DEPT MR 26765

411A Highland Avenue

Somerville, MA 02144

Dear Mr. Bixenspan,

This is in response to your November 25, 2016 Freedom of Information Act
request (#51716) regarding a potential 1955 memo to the Department of
Justice recommending criminal prosecution of the wrestling industry.

We make reasonable efforts to assist researchers with their work. As a
matter of policy, the National Archives is staffed to assist researchers
with their work, including but not limited to pointing researchers to
helpful finding aids to begin their research. However, given the
limitations on staff resources, we do not generally conduct substantive
research in response to requests filed under the Freedom of Information
Act, except in circumstances where documents are easily locatable.

We conducted a review of *Record Group 60: Records of the Department of
Justice* in an effort to help summarize entries that may be responsive to
your project. Based on your previous inquiries, we searched the Department
of Justice litigation case file against the National Wrestling Alliance.
The case is 60-406-3. Classification 60 refers to the Antitrust subject
designator.

We searched the following locations of case 60-406-3 for the “90 page
memorandum.” We were unable to locate the memo among these entries.

RG 60, Entry A1 COR 60, Box 2145

The inclusive dates are 1956 to 1959.

RG 60, Entry A1 COR 60, Box 3442

The inclusive dates are 1959 to approximately 1973.

In your request, you provided several accession numbers that you believe
may contain the records for which you are searching. We have reviewed each
of those accessions. Please see the notes below.

60-64-0580

Boxes 1596-1597

While this accession does refer to antitrust violations, the cases are
60-166-XX. This subclass designates the fruit industry.

60-69-2219

Box 333

This accession does not contain reference to antitrust cases. It contains
litigation related to the Warehouse Act (Classification 63), Lottery
(Classification 64), and Neutrality (Classification 71). None of these
entries contain more than 20 boxes.

60-70-4771

Box 789

This box number is for case 60-6-86, referencing an antitrust case against
the Motion Picture industry (Subclass 6 is Motion Picture).

60-71-389

Box 410

This is an antitrust case against the Sugar industry. The case referenced
is 60- 104-xx.

60-74-0343

Box 68

We were unable to locate this accession reference among RG 60 holdings.

60-79-0167

Box 35

This accession number is associated with early cases’ enclosures for
litigation against ice and furniture companies (subclasses 5 and 2
specifically).

These boxes contain several thousand pages of material. The case against
the National Wrestling Alliance (60-406-3) is open and available for use in
our Research Room. Classification 60 refers to antitrust litigation, while
subclass 406 is the prize fighting industry designator. If you believe that
this memo could be located among another DOJ litigation case file, please
provide the case file numbers to archives2reference@nara.gov so that an
additional search can be made. Should you or a colleague wish to view these
records in person, the Archives II Reference Section (RDTR2) is located at
8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD, near the University of
Maryland--College Park campus.

· Textual Research Room (Room 2000) hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00
p.m. Monday through Saturday, except legal holidays.

· Our consultation room hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday
through Friday, except legal holidays. No appointment is necessary.

· Records are retrieved Monday through Friday for use in the
Textual Research Room at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., 2:00 p.m., and
3:00 p.m. There are no pulls on Saturday. We do not pull in advance.

· Prior to your visit, please consult our web site at
http://www.archives.gov/dc-metro/college-park/.

If you cannot visit our location, a list of private researchers who are
familiar with National Archives facilities is available on our website at
http://www.archives.gov/research/hire-help/index.html.

We are happy to assist you in any additional research questions you may
have and hope this has been helpful in your search. We do not consider this
a denial of your FOIA request. However, if you are not satisfied with our
action on this request, your options for appeal and dispute resolution are
outlined in the attached enclosure. This completes the processing of your
request.

We hope that this has been useful in your research.

Sincerely,

HALEY J. MAYNARD

Archives II Reference Branch (RDT2)

National Archives at College Park, MD

Good afternoon,

We have received your follow-up inquiry regarding your FOIA request RD
51716. A response was provided on December 21, 2017, and is included below.
In summary, we were unable to locate the 90-page memo within the accession
numbers provided. The case against the National Wrestling Alliance
(60-406-3) is open and can be viewed on-site at our College Park, MD
facility. If you feel the memo may be within a different case file number,
please provide that case file number, and we will be happy to take a look.
_____________

Reply to RDT2 17-08934HJM
FOIA Case File # 51716

December 20, 2016

David Bixenspan
MuckRock
DEPT MR 26765
411A Highland Avenue
Somerville, MA 02144

Dear Mr. Bixenspan,

This is in response to your November 25, 2016 Freedom of Information Act
request (#51716) regarding a potential 1955 memo to the Department of
Justice recommending criminal prosecution of the wrestling industry.

We make reasonable efforts to assist researchers with their work. As a
matter of policy, the National Archives is staffed to assist researchers
with their work, including but not limited to pointing researchers to
helpful finding aids to begin their research. However, given the
limitations on staff resources, we do not generally conduct substantive
research in response to requests filed under the Freedom of Information
Act, except in circumstances where documents are easily locatable.

We conducted a review of *Record Group 60: Records of the Department of
Justice* in an effort to help summarize entries that may be responsive to
your project. Based on your previous inquiries, we searched the Department
of Justice litigation case file against the National Wrestling Alliance.
The case is 60-406-3. Classification 60 refers to the Antitrust subject
designator.

We searched the following locations of case 60-406-3 for the “90 page
memorandum.” We were unable to locate the memo among these entries.

RG 60, Entry A1 COR 60, Box 2145

The inclusive dates are 1956 to 1959.

RG 60, Entry A1 COR 60, Box 3442

The inclusive dates are 1959 to approximately 1973.

In your request, you provided several accession numbers that you believe
may contain the records for which you are searching. We have reviewed each
of those accessions. Please see the notes below.

60-64-0580
Boxes 1596-1597
While this accession does refer to antitrust violations, the cases are
60-166-XX. This subclass designates the fruit industry.

60-69-2219
Box 333
This accession does not contain reference to antitrust cases. It contains
litigation related to the Warehouse Act (Classification 63), Lottery
(Classification 64), and Neutrality (Classification 71). None of these
entries contain more than 20 boxes.

60-70-4771
Box 789
This box number is for case 60-6-86, referencing an antitrust case against
the Motion Picture industry (Subclass 6 is Motion Picture).

60-71-389
Box 410
This is an antitrust case against the Sugar industry. The case referenced
is 60- 104-xx.

60-74-0343
Box 68
We were unable to locate this accession reference among RG 60 holdings.

60-79-0167
Box 35
This accession number is associated with early cases’ enclosures for
litigation against ice and furniture companies (subclasses 5 and 2
specifically).

These boxes contain several thousand pages of material. The case against
the National Wrestling Alliance (60-406-3) is open and available for use in
our Research Room. Classification 60 refers to antitrust litigation, while
subclass 406 is the prize fighting industry designator. If you believe that
this memo could be located among another DOJ litigation case file, please
provide the case file numbers to archives2reference@nara.gov so that an
additional search can be made.

Should you or a colleague wish to view these records in person, the
Archives II Reference Section (RDTR2) is located at 8601 Adelphi Road,
College Park, MD, near the University of
Maryland--College Park campus.

· Textual Research Room (Room 2000) hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00
p.m. Monday through Saturday, except legal holidays.

· Our consultation room hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday
through Friday, except legal holidays. No appointment is necessary.

· Records are retrieved Monday through Friday for use in the
Textual Research Room at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., 2:00 p.m., and
3:00 p.m. There are no pulls on Saturday. We do not pull in advance.

· Prior to your visit, please consult our web site at
http://www.archives.gov/dc-metro/college-park/.

If you cannot visit our location, a list of private researchers who are
familiar with National Archives facilities is available on our website at
http://www.archives.gov/research/hire-help/index.html.

We are happy to assist you in any additional research questions you may
have and hope this has been helpful in your search. We do not consider this
a denial of your FOIA request. However, if you are not satisfied with our
action on this request, your options for appeal and dispute resolution are
outlined in the attached enclosure. This completes the processing of your
request.

We hope that this has been useful in your research.

Sincerely,

HALEY J. MAYNARD

Good morning,

That is correct. We were unable to locate the 1955 memo among DOJ case
60-406-3.
--
Haley J Maynard | archivist
Textual Reference Operations
National Archives at College Park, MD
301.837.0569