Understanding "predisposition" in entrapment cases
| Tracking # |
1325510-000 |
| Submitted | March 23, 2015 |
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Communications
From: Jeremy Allen
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. I hereby request the following records:
1. All records, files, presentations, exchanges, and training materials that FBI staff and agents use to teach, clarify, understand, or report on the concept of "predisposition" or being "predisposed" in relation to entrapment cases. Here, by predisposition or being predisposed, I mean any above described references to the idea that an individual's predisposition toward a behavior absolves FBI agents and informants of any guilt of entrapping that individual.
2. All written or electronic communications exchanged between (a) FBI staff, agents, consultant, or contractors and (b) college or university professors, or other academic researchers, in which the concept of "predisposition" or being "predisposed" is discussed, clarified, analyzed, evaluated, debated, defined, or stated.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, and is not being made for commercial usage.
In the event that fees cannot be waived, 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,
Jeremy Allen
From: Sobonya, David P. (RMD) (FBI)
Dear Mr. Allen,
The FBI has received your Freedom of Information Act/Privacy (FOIPA) request and it will be forwarded to Initial Processing for review. Your request will be processed under the provisions of FOIPA and a response will be mailed to you at a later date.
Requests for fee waivers and expedited processing will be addressed once your request has been assigned an FOIPA request number. You will receive written notification of the FBI’s decision.
Information regarding the Freedom of Information Act/Privacy is available at http://www.fbi.gov<http://www.fbi.gov>/ or http://www.fbi.gov/foia/. If you require additional assistance please contact the Public Information Officer.
Thank you,
David P. Sobonya
Public Information Officer/GIS
Record/Information Dissemination Section (RIDS)
FBI-Records Management Division
170 Marcel Drive, Winchester, VA 22602-4843
PIO: (540) 868-4593
Direct: (540) 868-4286
Fax: (540) 868-4391/4997
-
~WRD000
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
An interim response, stating the request is being processed.
From: Jeremy Allen
Mr. Hardy,
Thank you for the update. I understand that FOIPA 1325510-000 is now underway and that NFP-44989 needs clarification. Regarding records requested in NFP-44989, I restate the description of requested records to read:
All email communications (including their attachments) exchanged between (a) a member of the FBI Training Division (including but not limited to the Academy) and (b) an email address from a .edu domain (colleges and universities), in which either of the following keywords appear in the body or subject line of the email: "predisposition" or "inducement." Please limit the search to emails exchanged between the beginning of 2010 and the end of 2014.
Best regards,
Jeremy Allen
From: Sobonya, David P. (RMD) (FBI)
Dear Mr. Allen,
The FBI has received your additional correspondence regarding your Freedom of Information Act/Privacy (FOIPA) request and it has been forwarded to Initial Processing or the assigned analyst for review. If appropriate, a response will be forthcoming.
Additional information regarding the FOIPA may be accessed at http://www.fbi.gov/, http://www.fbi.gov/foia/ or http://www.justice.gov/oip.
If you require additional assistance please contact me.
Thank you,
David P. Sobonya
Public Information Officer/GIS
Record/Information Dissemination Section (RIDS)
FBI-Records Management Division
170 Marcel Drive, Winchester, VA 22602-4843
PIO: (540) 868-4593
Direct: (540) 868-4286
Fax: (540) 868-4391/4997
-
~WRD000
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
A fix is required to perfect the request. The request has been rejected as being too vague, burdensome or otherwise unprocessable.
From: Jeremy Allen
Mr. Sobonya
You say my updated request is not specific enough. You describe my request as a search for "a" email between the described parties. If that were true, the request would be vague. But I did not request "a" email.
I requested "all" emails as described in the latest request. And I gave you the exact criteria by which to construct a specific query of your (the FBI Training Division) email database. Any person competent in database queries can construct such a query simply.
Here is the latest request again: "All email communications (including their attachments) exchanged between (a) a member of the FBI Training Division (including but not limited to the Academy) and (b) an email address from a .edu domain (colleges and universities), in which either of the following keywords appear in the body or subject line of the email: "predisposition" or "inducement." Please limit the search to emails exchanged between the beginning of 2010 and the end of 2014."
The parameters for such a query would be something like this:
First search:
"To" field: any FBI Training Division email address
AND
"From" field: any .edu email address
AND
"body" field: contains "predisposition" or "inducement"
AND
Date field: between 1/1/2010 and 5/27/2015
Then a second query:
"To" field: any .edu email address
AND
"From" field: any FBI Training Division email address
AND
"body" field: contains "predisposition" or "inducement"
AND
Date field: between 1/1/2010 and 5/27/2015
I hope this helps. If this is still too vague, then please explain more specifically why it is too vague, i.e., why you (the FBI Training Division) cannot construct such a query of your email database.
Best regards,
Jeremy Allen
From: Sobonya, David P. (RMD) (FBI)
Dear Mr. Allen,
The FBI has received your additional correspondence regarding your Freedom of Information Act/Privacy (FOIPA) request and it has been forwarded to Initial Processing or the assigned analyst for review. If appropriate, a response will be forthcoming.
Additional information regarding the FOIPA may be accessed at http://www.fbi.gov/, http://www.fbi.gov/foia/ or http://www.justice.gov/oip.
If you require additional assistance please contact me.
Thank you,
David P. Sobonya
Public Information Officer/GIS
Record/Information Dissemination Section (RIDS)
FBI-Records Management Division
170 Marcel Drive, Winchester, VA 22602-4843
PIO: (540) 868-4593
Direct: (540) 868-4286
Fax: (540) 868-4391/4997
-
~WRD000
From: Mcguinn, Lauren S. (RMD) (FBI)
Mr. Allen,
In regards to the above FOIA request, the FBI is not able to search e-mails without names.
Please see our policy about how to perfect a request on third party names:
The FBI has received your Freedom of Information Act/Privacy (FOIPA) request and it will be forwarded to Initial Processing for review. Your request will be processed under the provisions of FOIPA and a response will be mailed to you at a later date.
Requests for fee waivers and expedited processing will be addressed once your request has been assigned a FOIPA request number. You will receive written notification of the FBI's decision.
You have requested records concerning one or more third party individuals. The FBI recognizes an important privacy interest in the requested information. You may receive greater access to these records (if they exist) by providing one of the following: (1) an authorization and consent from the individual(s) (i.e., express authorization and consent of the third party); (2) proof of death (i.e., proof that your subject is deceased); or (3) a justification that the public interest in disclosure outweighs personal privacy (i.e., a clear demonstration that the public interest in disclosure outweighs personal property interests).
The U. S. Department of Justice CERTIFICATION OF IDENTITY (Authorization to Release Information to Another Person)-FORM DOJ-361, and is also available at http://www.fbi.gov/, http://www.fbi.gov/foia/ or http://www.justice.gov/oip/. Note-please provide the following information on the OPTIONAL: Authorization to Release Information to Another Person line: Your name, title/business (if applicable) and a complete and current mailing address. Acceptable forms of proof of death include; obituaries, death certificates, recognized sources that can be documented, written media, Who's Who in America, FBI file that indicates person is deceased or the Social Security Death Index. A waiver or proof of death is not required if date of birth is 100 years ago or greater. Note-a web link in itself does not satisfy proof of death.
Please return the form or letter to one of the following: by mail: FBI, Attn: FOIPA Request, 170 Marcel Drive, Winchester, VA 22602-4843, by fax: (540) 868-4391/4997 or by e-mail: foiparequest@ic.fbi.gov. You may submit an attachment listing additional information that may aid in locating responsive records. Please place your name and contact information on the attachment.
Information regarding the Freedom of Information Act/Privacy is available at http://www.fbi.gov/ or http://www.fbi.gov/foia/. If you require additional assistance please contact the Public Information Officer.
Thank you,
Lauren McGuinn
Public Liaison/GIS
Record/Information Dissemination Section (RIDS)
FBI-Records Management Division
170 Marcel Drive, Winchester, VA 22602-4843
PIO: (540) 868-4593
Direct: (540) 868-4286
Fax: (540) 868-4391/4997
E-mail: foiparequest@ic.fbi.gov
Questions E-mail: foipaquestions@ic.fbi.gov
Do you have further questions about the FOI/PA process? Visit us at http://www.fbi.gov/foia
Please check the status of your request online at http://www.fbi.gov/foia by clicking on the CHECK STATUS OF YOUR FOI/PA REQUEST under the FOIA INDEX located on the right side of the page. Status updates are performed on a weekly basis.
From: Jeremy Allen
Ms. McGuinn,
1. I do not believe that the FBI requires names in order to search an email database. As stated in my previous note, any competent database administrator or analyst can construct the query that I suggested. It seems absurd to suggest otherwise, unless you can provide a detailed explanation of why the FBI is unable.
2. The privacy concerns you outlined are unwarranted. There is a very simple solution. Run the query I suggested, then redact all the personally-identifying information from the emails, such as signature blocks and email addresses.
3. I, and the public, are most interested in the *conversation* around how the FBI develops its understanding of the concepts of predisposition and inducement. We are not interested in the personal identity of the FBI and university employees who are conducting the conversation. So, you can run the query I suggested and then redact the personal information and release the email conversations to the public.
I appreciate your continued followup, and as a reminder, here are the suggested query parameters:
The parameters for such a query would be something like this:
First search:
"To" field: any FBI Training Division email address
AND
"From" field: any .edu email address
AND
"body" field: contains "predisposition" or "inducement"
AND
Date field: between 1/1/2010 and 5/27/2015
Then a second query:
"To" field: any .edu email address
AND
"From" field: any FBI Training Division email address
AND
"body" field: contains "predisposition" or "inducement"
AND
Date field: between 1/1/2010 and 5/27/2015
Best regards,
Jeremy Allen
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
A cover letter granting the request and outlining any exempted materials, if any.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
A copy of documents responsive to the request.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
A cover letter granting the request and outlining any exempted materials, if any.
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