DHS field office reports re: cell site simulator deployments (CBP)

Shawn Musgrave filed this request with the United States Customs and Border Protection of the United States of America.
Tracking #

2016-036652

Due July 1, 2016
Est. Completion None
Status
Awaiting Response

Communications

From: Shawn Musgrave

To Whom It May Concern:

This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. I hereby request the following records:

All field office annual reports reflecting the total number of times a cell-site simulator is deployed in the jurisdiction; the number of deployments at the request of other agencies, including state or local law enforcement; and the number of times the technology is deployed in emergency circumstances.

Per the amended policy on cell site simulators, "POLICY DIRECTIVE 047-02: Department Policy Regarding the Use of Cell-Site Simulator Technology" (available at https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Department%20Policy%20Regarding%20the%20Use%20of%20Cell-Site%20Simulator%20Technology.pdf): "Each field office shall report to its Component headquarters annual records reflecting the
total number of times a cell-site simulator is deployed in the jurisdiction; the number of deployments at the request of other agencies, including state or local law enforcement; and the number of times the technology is deployed in emergency circumstances."

As I am submitting this FOIA request in my capacity as a journalist who has covered extensively the deployment of cell site simulators by law enforcement at the federal, state, and local levels, I assert that I am appropriately categorized as a media requester for the purpose of fees. As this request concerns a matter of intense public interest and responsive documents will be posted online for the public to review free of charge, I further request a waiver of any applicable fees.

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,

Shawn Musgrave
New England Center for Investigative Reporting

From: Department of Homeland Security

Good Afternoon, Attached is our final response to your request.  If you need to contact this office again concerning your request, please provide the DHS reference number. This will enable us to quickly retrieve the information you are seeking and reduce our response time. This office can be reached at 866-431-0486 or 202-343-1743. Regards, DHS Privacy Office Disclosure & FOIA Program
STOP 0655
Department of Homeland Security
245 Murray Drive, SW
Washington, DC 20528-0655
Telephone:  1-866-431-0486 or 202-343-1743
Fax:  202-343-4011
Visit our FOIA website

  • Department of Homeland Security FOIA 2016-HQFO-00373 Final Response

From: CBPFOIA@cbp.dhs.gov

05/11/2016
Shawn Musgrave
MuckRock 411A Highland Ave., Dept MR 23670 Sommerville MA 02144-2516
Dear Shawn Musgrave
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Division received your letter inquiring about a FOIA request that you previously submitted to CBP reference FOIA number CBP-OFO-2016-036652.
This letter is to confirm that your FOIA request has been received by CBP and will be processed in the order it was received.  Once responsive records are available, you will be notified electronically by CBP FOIA that records are available to view via your FOIAonline account.  If you already have a FOIAonline account, you can view or print responsive records from your account.  If you do not already have a FOIAonline account, please create one by taking the following steps:

* Simply go to your search engine (i.e., google, etc.) and type FOIAonline, then hit enter, that will take you to the FOIAonline site.
* From there, press the green button on the right “Create an Account” and follow the prompts to create a FOIAonline account.
* Make sure when creating your account you use the same email address that you provided when submitting your original FOIA request – that way the email addresses in your original FOIA request can be synched with the FOIAonline account you create.
Submitting a FOIA request online is the preferred method (vs. postal mail) for many reasons:
* You immediately receive a unique FOIA tracking number and acknowledgment that your FOIA request was received by CBP.
* You can track your FOIA request any day/any time through your FOIAonline account.
* When responsive records become available, you receive an email letting you know records can be viewed via your FOIAonline account,
* You can view all of your historical FOIA requests via the “dashboard” in your FOIAonline account.
In the future, please use your FOIAonline account to submit future FOIA requests to CBP.  Please note that all FOIA requests for official travel records on an individual must include 1) the subject’s name, 2) the subject’s date of birth, and 3) third party consent.  If this information is not provided with the original FOIA request, it will be considered “insufficient”, and will not be processed.
Finally, the CBP FOIA office has a significant backlog of FOIA requests.  The expected response time for a FOIA request for travel documents is 9 – 12 months.   If you do not receive a response to your FOIA request within 20 business days, please do not resubmit the same FOIA request as it creates further delays.  We are working very hard to clear the FOIA backlog and we thank you in advance for your cooperation.

CBP FOIA Division

From: CBPFOIA@cbp.dhs.gov

This message is to confirm your request submission to the FOIAonline application: View Request. Request information is as follows: (https://foiaonline.regulations.gov:443/foia/action/public/view/request?objectId=090004d280c82d90)
* Tracking Number: CBP-2016-040735
* Requester Name: Shawn Musgrave
* Date Submitted: 05/16/2016
* Request Status: Submitted
* Description: read attached document

From: CBPFOIA@cbp.dhs.gov

This FOIA request has been closed as it is a duplicate of an earlier FOIA request (2016-036652) that you submitted.  Your earlier FOIA request will be processed in the order it was received.

From: Shawn Musgrave

Hello -

I have no record of receiving an acknowledgement for any request with CBP tracking number 2016-036652. Please advise as to its subject matter before closing out the present request — I have multiple FOIA requests in to CBP and other DHS components regarding cell site simulators, but each is for a distinct document.

Best,
Shawn Musgrave

From: CBPFOIA@cbp.dhs.gov

FOIA request CBP-2017-000662 has been closed as it is a duplicate of an earlier FOIA requests 2016-036652 and 2016-040735 that you submitted.  Your earlier FOIA request 2016-036652 is being processed.

From: CBPFOIA@cbp.dhs.gov

This message is to confirm your request submission to the FOIAonline application: View Request. Request information is as follows: (https://foiaonline.regulations.gov:443/foia/action/public/view/request?objectId=090004d280eb51a8)
* Tracking Number: CBP-2017-000662
* Requester Name: Shawn Musgrave
* Date Submitted: 10/05/2016
* Request Status: Submitted
* Description: follow up of request sent April 25, 2016

From: CBPFOIA@cbp.dhs.gov

FOIA request CBP-2016-044065 has been closed as it is a duplicate of an earlier FOIA request that you submitted.  Your earlier FOIA request [CBP-2016-036652] will be processed in the order it was received.

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  • 04/25/2016

    Department of Homeland Security FOIA 2016-HQFO-00373 Final Response

  • 05/11/2016

    CBP-OFO-2016-036652 - Status letter

  • 10/05/2016

    Final Disposition, Request CBP-2017-000662