Darui v. U.S. Department of State

CourtDistrict Court, District of Columbia
DecidedJuly 11, 2011
DocketCivil Action No. 2009-2093
StatusPublished

This text of Darui v. U.S. Department of State (Darui v. U.S. Department of State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, District of Columbia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Darui v. U.S. Department of State, (D.D.C. 2011).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ____________________________________ ) FARZAD DARUI, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil Action No. 09-02093 (ABJ) ) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ) STATE, ) ) Defendant. ) ___________________________________ )

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Plaintiff Farzad Darui brought this action against the United States Department of State

seeking the release of documents under the Freedom of Information Act. Defendant has moved

for summary judgment. Upon consideration of the motion, plaintiff’s opposition, the Court’s

own review of the documents themselves, and the entire record of the case, the Court will grant

defendant’s motion.

I. Background

Plaintiff Farzad Darui was the business manager of the Islamic Center (the “Center”) in

Washington D.C., and his responsibilities included paying the Center’s invoices by mailing

checks to its various vendors. United States v. Darui, Criminal No. 07-00149 (RCL), Compl. ¶¶

5, 8 (D.D.C. Oct. 12, 2006) (“Crim. Compl.”). On October 12, 2006, the United States filed

criminal charges against Darui in this Court, alleging that Darui had altered the payee line on

multiple checks intended for the Center’s vendors and had instead deposited them to a bank

account held by a corporation in which he was the chief executive officer. Id. ¶¶ 8 11. The

government charged him with mail fraud and interstate transportation of stolen property. Id. ¶ 2. During the course of plaintiff’s criminal trial, the government made known its intention

to call a witness who worked for the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia (the “Embassy”). Def.’s

Mot. for Summ. J., Ex B, United States v. Darui, Criminal No. 07-00149 (RCL), Trial Transcript

at 83 (D.D.C. May 19, 2008) (“Crim. Tr.”). Before the witness testified, the Court reviewed two

letters under seal between the Department of State (“State” or “defendant”) and the Ambassador

of Saudi Arabia concerning a limited waiver of sovereign immunity for the Embassy witness

under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Crim. Tr. at 84, 89. The limited waiver

of sovereign immunity authorized the witness to testify in the criminal proceedings against

plaintiff about certain documents he saw while working at the Embassy. Id. at 85. The Court

reviewed the letters, and on May 19, 2008, the Court directed that they be shown to plaintiff and

his defense counsel for purposes of limiting the scope of cross-examination. Id. at 88 90. The

Court also placed the documents and any further discussion of them under seal. Id. at 89–90.

On June 17, 2008, plaintiff submitted a document request to State under the Freedom of

Information Act (“FOIA”), 5 U.S.C. § 552. Declaration of Margaret P. Grafeld (“Grafeld

Decl.”) ¶ 4. The initial request sought all documents collected and maintained by State regarding

plaintiff. Id. On October 2, 2008, plaintiff narrowed his FOIA request to three sets of

documents. Id. ¶ 10. These categories are: (1) communications between State and the

Department of Justice (“DOJ”) in May 2008 regarding plaintiff; (2) any communications

between State and the Embassy regarding plaintiff between August 2006 and October 2008; (3)

any communications between State and the Islamic Center of Washington, D.C. regarding

plaintiff between August 2006 and October 2008. Id. Upon receiving the narrowed request,

State asserts that it initiated a comprehensive search of the Central Foreign Policy Records, the

2 Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, the Office of the Legal Advisor, and the United States Embassy

in Riyadh. Def.’s Mem. in Support of Mot. for Summ. J. (“Def.’s Mem.”) at 4.

On November 6, 2009, plaintiff filed this action seeking a court order requiring the

release of all responsive records under FOIA. Compl. ¶ 1. On March 17, 2010, defendant

informed plaintiff that its search of the Central Foreign Policy Record, the Bureau of Near

Eastern Affairs and the Office of the Legal Advisor had resulted in three responsive documents.

Grafeld Decl. ¶ 16, Ex. 12. The March 17 correspondence further explained that State was

withholding all three documents, in full, pursuant to FOIA Exemption 1 (properly classified

materials authorized to be kept secret in the interest of national defense and foreign policy),

Exemption 5 (inter- or intra-agency memoranda which would not be available by law to a party

other than an agency in litigation with the agency), and Exemption 7(A) (records or information

compiled for law enforcement purposes, the production of which could reasonably be expected

to interfere with enforcement proceedings). Id. On April 8, 2010, State wrote plaintiff again,

notifying him that it had completed its search of the United States Embassy at Riyadh and had

located no further responsive documents. Id. ¶ 17, Ex. 13.

On May 3, 2010, State wrote plaintiff a third time. Def.’s Mot. for Summ. J., Ex. C. The

letter included a Vaughn index that described the three responsive documents and explained the

FOIA exemptions under which they were being withheld. Id. at 2–3. The Vaughn index

explained that Document 1 consisted of a series of emails between attorneys at State and the

Department of Justice and was being withheld pursuant to FOIA Exemptions 5 and 7(A). Id. at

2. Document 2 was described as a letter from an official at State to the Ambassador of Saudi

Arabia, and Document 3 was a letter from the Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the United States.

3 Id. at 2–3. The May 3 letter also informed plaintiff that Documents 2 and 3 were being withheld

in full pursuant to FOIA exemptions 1 and 7(A). Id.

Meanwhile, the government’s criminal case against plaintiff resulted in a hung jury;

thereafter, the government moved to dismiss the criminal charges. Def.’s Mot. for Summ. J., Ex.

A at 18, 29. On August 16, 2010, the Court granted the government’s motion. Id. State then

informed plaintiff that it would no longer assert an exemption of the responsive documents under

FOIA Exemption 7(A) but that it would continue to withhold Document 1 under Exemption 5,

and withhold Documents 2 and 3 under Exemption 1. Def.’s Mem. at 5.

On September 17, 2010, defendant State moved for summary judgment pursuant to Fed.

R. Civ. P. 56. Attached to the motion is the Declaration of Margaret P. Grafeld, the Acting

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Global Information Services and the Director of the Office of

Information Programs and Services of the Department of State. Grafeld Decl. at 1.

On June 30, 2011, the Court directed defendant to produce the three documents at issue

to chambers for in camera inspection to assist the Court in making a responsible de novo

determination.

II. Standard of Review

The purpose of the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, is to require the release

of government records upon request. “The basic purpose of FOIA is to ensure an informed

citizenry, vital to the functioning of a democratic society, needed to check against corruption and

to hold the governors accountable to the governed.” NLRB v. Robbins Tire & Rubber Co., 437

U.S. 214, 242 (1978). “Yet Congress realized that legitimate governmental and private interests

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