Notice of Orders or Judgments in FOIA court case against the CIA Re: Case Number: 1:98-cv-01319

1. In August of this year Studies Solutions Results, Inc.'s attorney, Elaine English, quit the case without reason. However this has proved to be advantageous for we have now hired two attorneys Mark Zaird, and Jim Lazar, who specialize in FOIA cases have now been retained to handle the case.

2. The U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia where the case is being litigated has denied the CIA's motion for summary judgment. The following is a brief summary of the decision.

Findings by the court:
The CIA has not established the adequacy of its search for documents The CIA has properly invoked various exemptions to justify the withholding and redaction of certain documents responsive to plaintiff's case The court:

a. Did not grant discovery; i.e., depositions, calling witnesses, and an independent search of the CIA (However the new attorneys assure me that we can still get the court to grant discovery).
b. The court concluded the 40,000 pages of Senate Select Committee POW/MIA documents at the National Archives are no longer Agency records. [We seek the same records directly from the CIA].
c. The Congress is not subject to the FOIA. The CIA claims all their documents are declassified, the 40,000 pages evidences they are not.
d. Documents concerning intelligence sources and methods were properly withheld or redacted.
e. Concluded the Department of Defense [properly, ed.] also invoked [FOIA] exemption 3 to withhold information regarding last known locations of a particular POW/MIA, the organization of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the organization of the CIA. The last known locations of the POW/MIA were withheld under the McCain Bill, which forbids the disclosure of such information when the POW/MIA's next of kin has not given express permission for its release.
f. One request was narrowed to information on POW/MIAs sent outside Southeast Asia only.

The Order/Judgment is 22 pages long. I will get an electronic file from the court which I will E-mail for all to read. This is not a final decision. The case takes on a new intensity and we can still get discovery and depositions. We expect to appeal any unfavorable final decision. In fact your assistance is even more urgently needed for we now have two more experienced and specialized attorneys which will cost us more. Obtaining information on even one live POW is worth all the money spent

Plaintiff, by and through his counsel, hereby opposes the Motion for Summary Judgment filed by Defendant with this Court on October 15, 1998 and supports his opposition with this memorandum of points and authorities.

End of Update

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