FOIA Kelly Venden Army OMPF sergeant major retired

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

The Army Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) for Kelly D Venden including form DD-214, all NCO evaluation reports DA FORM 2166-8 / DA Form 2166-9-2 / DA Form 2166-9-1 / DA FORM 2166-9-3 , all Enlisted Evaluation Reports (EER), DA FORM 2-1, Record of previous assignments form, dates of promotion, administrative remarks, all training courses/military education received, full military awards and citations.
Kelly D Venden served in the United States Army as a enlisted soldier between approximately 1982 to 2003. served during Operation Just Cause, Operation Desert Storm and claimed numerous awards, badges and decorations including combat infantryman badge, Bronze Star Medal, joint service commendation medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Award, Military Free Fall Parachutist Badge, Ranger Tab, Kuwait Liberation Medal, Presidential Unit Citation and etc. Retired as Sergeant Major E-9. Please redact any sensitive information protected in accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974.
Please note: I represent the general public and am not next of kin of this servicemember, and thus do not know the military service number. Please process my request for this service member's OMPF and other records under the Freedom of Information Act’s relevant provisions. His background military experience is of public interest.
I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as I believe this request is in the public interest. The requested documents will be processed by a representative of the news media/press.

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,

Eric Bradley

Re: Freedom of Information Act Appeal

Dear FOIA Officer:

This is an appeal under the Freedom of Information Act, concerning the U.S. Army Human Resources Command refusal to disclose documents within its control. Army Human Resources Command controls the records of discharged Army service members from 2003 to present. Army Human Resources Command claims "no records" for the subject FOIA request.
I would like to appeal challenging the adequacy of the search which resulted in an initial "no records" response. I believe a search of all available databases available to the Army Human Resources Command including Department of the Army Special Roster was not performed and that due diligence was not performed. It seems implausible that there is no records at all for this decorated servicemember including basic information such as service dates, unit assignments and awards/decorations. If the records are located at the NPRC, please provide NPRC registry number or if the records are located at another location, please provide the contact information.
If the information is classified per FOIA exemption 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(1) / Executive Order 13526 , the Human Resources Command needs to communicate this. Under exemption one, if a document has been properly classified under a Presidential Executive order, the document can be withheld from disclosure. However, classified documents may still be requested under the FOIA. An agency may then review the document to determine if it still requires protection.