Letter to DOJ Requesting Inspector General's Report on FBI Laboratory Pursuant to Freedom of Information Act

For More Information:
Jack King, Director of Public Affairs
202-872-8600 ext. 228, media@nacdl.com

Letter to DOJ
Requesting Inspector General's Report on FBI Laboratory
Pursuant to Freedom of Information Act

February 4, 1997

FOIA/PA Officer
U.S. Department of Justice
10th and Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20530

Re:Request for release of Inspector General’s report on FBI laboratory pursuant to Freedom of Information Act

Dear Sir/Madam:

On behalf of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, its 9,000 members and 25,000 state and local affiliate members, we hereby request access to or a copy of any and all drafts of the Department of Justice’s Inspector General report on the state of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s forensic laboratory and its employees, as widely reported in The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Reuters news service and other news media last week (week of Jan. 29 to Feb. 2, 1997). For clarity’s sake, a copy of the front page story from today’s Legal Times is attached and incorporated in this request by reference. (Benjamin Wittes, “Forensic Frenzy,” Legal Times 2/3/97 at 1.)

This request is being made pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, as amended, 5 U.S.C. 552 et seq.

If any draft of the Inspector General’s report is denied, in whole or in part, please specify which exemptions(s) is (are) claimed for each document or portion denied and provide a complete itemized inventory and a detailed factual justification of the total or partial denial of each document. Specify the number of pages in each document, and the total number of pages pertaining to this request.

In excising any material, please “black out” the material rather than “white out” or “cut out.” We expect, as provided by FOIA, that the remaining non-exempt portions of all documents will be released.

We intend to appeal all denials; therefore, please specify the office and address to which appeals should be directed.

We believe that a waiver of fees should be granted because (1) the requestor, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization; (2) this request does not serve any commercial interest of the requestor; (3) release of the requested Inspector General’s report will serve the public interest through significant contribution to public understanding of the operation of the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and (4) the undersigned is an employee of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers whose primary responsibility is educating the public in criminal justice matters. Accordingly, we request a waiver of all search and duplication fees under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(A). However, if a waiver is denied and fees are estimated to exceed $150, please notify us of the estimated charges so that we may either pay the fees or appeal the denial of our request for a fee waiver.

We expect a response to this request within ten (10) working days as required by law. If there are any questions, please contact the undersigned by telephone at (202) 872-8600, extension 228.

Sincerely yours,

G. Jack King, Jr.
Director, Public Affairs
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

Attachment

National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL)
1025 Connecticut Ave. NW, Ste. 901, Washington DC 20036
www.criminaljustice.org / www.nacdl.org
(202) 872-8600 / FAX(202) 872-8690 / assist@nacdl.com