BLM comms (Metropolitan Police Department)

This is an automated message from the DC Government FOIA system. Dear Emma Best, Request Number 2020-FOIA-06043 has been assigned to the request you submitted in relation to: Request description: To Whom It May Concern:

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

Emails, letters, and memos to or from police/law enforcement unions, the National Guard, or federal officials between May 1, 2020 and the present.

I also request copies of emails containing any of the following: "protest", "protests", "Black Lives Matter", "BLM", "riot", "riots", "antifa", "antifascist", "anti-fascist", or "militia".

I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I have previously written about the government and its activities, with some reaching over 100,000 readers in outlets such as Gizmodo, MuckRock, Motherboard, Property of the People, Unicorn Riot, and The Outline, among others. As such, as I have a reasonable expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through non-profits such as the library Internet Archive and the journalist non-profit MuckRock, disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself. As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular subject in advance.

As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.

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 15 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Emma Best In all future correspondence regarding this request, please reference request number 2020-FOIA-06043. To check for status, please log in  https://foia-dc.gov/palMain.aspx and go to Request Status. For any questions regarding your request, please contact the FOIA office directly. Find the list of agency Open Governement and FOIA contact information by visiting FOIA Contact Information. For ease of reference, we ask that you have your FOIA Request Number available when you contact the FOIA office. (https://dc.gov/node/818962) Regards,
DC Government FOIA Portal Having technical difficulties? Email FOIA.SystemAdmin@dc.gov or call 202-478-5973

May 12, 2023

Emma Best

411A Highland Avenue, MR94626

Somerville, Massachusetts 02144

requests@muckrock.com

RE: FOIA Request No. 2020-FOIA-06043

Dear Ms. Best:

This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for: "Emails, letters, and memos to or from police/law enforcement unions, the National Guard, or federal officials between May 1, 2020 and the present. I also request copies of emails containing any of the following: "protest", "protests", "Black Lives Matter", "BLM", "riot", "riots", "antifa", "antifascist", "anti-fascist", or "militia".".

A review of the description of this request indicates that its description does not meet the "standard of adequacy" for a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, and as such is not a "perfected" request. Therefore, we are not able to perform a "reasonable and adequate" search for records, relative to the lack of specific requested content or other identifying characteristics. Please note the instructions provided in 1 DCMR § 402.4 ("A request shall reasonably describe the desired records. Where possible, specific information regarding names, places, events, subjects, dates, files, titles, file designation, or other identifying information shall be supplied"). A requester must frame requests with sufficient particularity to ensure that searches are not unreasonably burdensome and to enable the agency to determine precisely what records are being requested. Assassination Archives & Research Center, Inc. v. CIA, 720 F. Supp. 217, 219 (D.D.C. 1989). "The rationale for this rule is that FOIA was not intended to reduce government agencies to full-time investigators on behalf of requesters." This request provides certain search parameters, but without a clear description of the specific content or other characteristics of the records the requester actually seeks/needs.

This request asks for a search for "Emails, letters, and memos" to or from multiple entities external to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) without specific information as "to whom" or "from whom" being identified, and and without a specific subject matter/content, in multiple types of media/formats, covering an extended period of time, and of or for the entire Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), an agency with thousands of employees and many components and subcomponents. Further, the second portion of the request asks for e-mail messages, without benefit of the content of such communications having been identified, also of or for the entire MPD, that would contain only certain of a number of search terms/words and, again, without specific, particularized content and other specifically identifying characteristics.

This request, in effect, asks for research to be performed on behalf of the requester; and moreover, poses an undue burden on the very limited resources of the MPD. Such a request requires, not just electronic searches, but further manual searches of records and records systems of the entire MPD to identify/locate, and verify responsiveness of unclearly described records, as well as a time-consuming review for material exempt from release under one (1) or more FOIA exemptions; and, any necessary coordination/consultation with components and external entities that may have an interest in the disposition of such potentially responsive records. The courts have said that the FOIA was not intended to reduce government agencies to be investigators or to perform research on behalf of requesters. Again, the FOIA does not require agencies to conduct "unreasonably burdensome" searches for records. "FOIA creates only a right of access to records, not a right to personal services." Hudgins v. IRS, 620 F. Supp. 19, 21 (D.D.C. 1985). See also Brown v. F.B.I., 675 F. Supp. 2d 122, 129-130 (D.D.C. 2009). The courts have found that requests that are so broad and sweeping that they lack specificity are not reasonably described; therefore, we are closing our file on this request.

I note also that as broadly described such material that may be located are likely to contain individuals' personal privacy information among such records and are, or would be, anticipated to be subject to protection from release under the District of Columbia (DC) FOIA privacy exemptions because the MPD FOIA Office is unable to locate documentation, e.g., a signed/notarized release or signed/notarized waiver of personal privacy interests, or signed/notarized retainer agreement, including from third-parties; or other documentation to verify the identity of the subject of any records, such as a government-issued photo ID, along with signed documentation, such as referenced above, for the release of personal privacy records from any individual(s) who may be the subject of, who may otherwise be identified within, or who may have a personal privacy interest in the disposition of, such records, to the extent that such a search may locate records that could be or are actually responsive. A release of such records, again if any, would otherwise constitute an (a clearly) unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, and is or would be exempt from disclosure pursuant to D.C. Official Code § 2-534 (a)(2) and (a)(3)(C). Protected information could include names/personal identifiers and other personal privacy information, including that which may lead to the identity of individuals, as even the release of minor details may reveal personal privacy information. I note further, that no information has been provided that, or explains how, the release of such records that might or might not be responsive, would shed light on the operations and activities of the government. Other FOIA exemptions could/may also apply.

There are no charges for FOI A services, in this instance.

Please know that, under D.C. Official Code § 2-537 and 1 DCMR § 412, you have the right to appeal this letter to the Mayor or to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. If you elect to appeal to the Mayor, your appeal must be in writing and contain "Freedom of Information Act Appeal" or "FOIA Appeal" in the subject line of the letter as well on the outside of the envelope. The appeal must include (1) a copy of the original request; (2) a copy of any written denial; (3) a statement of the circumstances, reasons, and/or arguments advanced in support of disclosure; and (4) a daytime telephone number, an e-mail and/or U.S. mailing address at which you can be reached.

The appeal must be mailed to: The Mayor's Office of Legal Counsel, FOIA Appeal, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 407, Washington, D.C. 20004. Electronic versions of the same information can instead be e-mailed to the Mayor's Office of Legal Counsel at foia.appeals@dc.gov<mailto:foia.appeals@dc.gov>. Further, a copy of all appeal materials must be forwarded to the Freedom of Information Officer of the involved agency, or to the agency head of that agency, if there is no designated Freedom of Information Officer there. Failure to follow these administrative steps will result in delay in the processing and commencement of a response to your appeal to the Mayor.

Sincerely,

Bob Eckert

FOIA Specialist

Freedom of Information Act Office

Metropolitan Police Department

Robert.eckert@dc.gov<mailto:Robert.eckert@dc.gov>

"Excellence is transferable."

This is an automated message from the DC Government FOIA system. Dear Emma Best, The status for your request is below. Please log into https://foia-dc.gov/palMain.aspx and go to Request Status. If you have any questions regarding the status of your request, please contact the agency's FOIA office that you had submitted your FOIA request to. You can communicate directly with the FOIA office by clicking on Inbox, search the request number, and then click Compose Message. OR, visit to see a list DC Government FOIA Office’s/officer’s contact information and have your Request ID ready. (https://dc.gov/node/818962) Contact FOIA Office Request status: In Process Request ID: 2020-FOIA-06043 Description: To Whom It May Concern:Pursuant to the DC Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:Emails, letters, and memos to or from police/law enforcement unions, the National Guard, or federal officials between May 1, 2020 and the present.I also request copies of emails containing any of the following: "protest", "protests", "Black Lives Matter", "BLM", "riot", "riots", "antifa", "antifascist", "anti-fascist", or "militia".I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I have previously written about the government and its activities, with some reaching over 100,000 readers in outlets such as Gizmodo, MuckRock, Motherboard, Property of the People, Unicorn Riot, and The Outline, among others. As such, as I have a reasonable expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through non-profits such as the library Internet Archive and the journalist non-profit MuckRock, disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself. As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular subject in advance.As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.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 15 business days, as the statute requires.Sincerely,Emma Best Regards,
DC Government FOIA Portal

This is an automated message from the DC Government FOIA system. Dear Emma Best, The status for your request is below. Please log into https://foia-dc.gov/palMain.aspx and go to Request Status. If you have any questions regarding the status of your request, please contact the agency's FOIA office that you had submitted your FOIA request to. You can communicate directly with the FOIA office by clicking on Inbox, search the request number, and then click Compose Message. OR, visit to see a list DC Government FOIA Office’s/officer’s contact information and have your Request ID ready. (https://dc.gov/node/818962) Contact FOIA Office Request status: Closed Request ID: 2020-FOIA-06043 Description: To Whom It May Concern:Pursuant to the DC Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:Emails, letters, and memos to or from police/law enforcement unions, the National Guard, or federal officials between May 1, 2020 and the present.I also request copies of emails containing any of the following: "protest", "protests", "Black Lives Matter", "BLM", "riot", "riots", "antifa", "antifascist", "anti-fascist", or "militia".I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I have previously written about the government and its activities, with some reaching over 100,000 readers in outlets such as Gizmodo, MuckRock, Motherboard, Property of the People, Unicorn Riot, and The Outline, among others. As such, as I have a reasonable expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through non-profits such as the library Internet Archive and the journalist non-profit MuckRock, disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself. As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular subject in advance.As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.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 15 business days, as the statute requires.Sincerely,Emma Best Regards,
DC Government FOIA Portal