Filed Date: June 25, 2008
Closed Date: 2011
Clearinghouse coding complete
On June 25, 2008, Prison Legal News (PLN), a non-profit monthly publication, filed this lawsuit against the District of Columbia Office of the Attorney General (OAG) in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Represented by attorneys from the Partnership for Civil Justice, PLN brought this action under the District of Columbia Freedom of Information Act (D.C. FOIA), D.C. Code § 2-537(a)(1), requesting a response to a request previously filed with the OAG without the charging of fees.
Specifically, on January 7, 2008, PLN had requested that the OAG release the initial claim or complaint and the verdict sheet, settlement, and/or general release filed in each case where the District of Columbia Department of Corrections paid more than $1,000 in damages, attorneys' fees, or sanctions from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2007. PLN also sought a waiver of fees in the request. PLN sought to publish this information to inform the public on how the D.C. prison system is run and managed. The OAG denied the fee waiver request claiming that it was not in the interest of the OAG to waive copying costs associated with the request, and also refused to produce the records in electronic format, which would have eliminated any copying costs. PLN claimed that the OAG did not take into account the public interest in denying the fee waiver that PLN was eligible for under law. PLN sought declaratory and injunctive relief for the requested records without any fees, and reasonable attorneys' fees and costs.
On September 2, 2008, the OAG filed a motion to dismiss, claiming that the requested documents had already been made available to PLN. On January 13, 2011, PLN reported that they were able to obtain over 600 responsive documents from the OAG. However, PLN claimed that the delivery of the documents was caused by this lawsuit being filed, and thus moved for attorneys' fees and costs on June 8, 2011. On December 1, 2011, Judge Michael Rankin issued an order granting attorneys' fees and costs in the amount of $75,290 to PLN. Judge Rankin held that there was a "causal nexus" between PLN's lawsuit and the production of responsive documents, and thus PLN was entitled to attorneys' fees and costs under D.C. FOIA. The case was closed following Judge Rankin's order.
Summary Authors
John He (11/6/2015)
Rankin, D. Battle (District of Columbia)
Messineo, Carl L (District of Columbia)
DeMarco, Juliane T. (District of Columbia)
McKinley, Erica Taylor (District of Columbia)
Nickles, Peter J. (District of Columbia)
Last updated Aug. 30, 2023, 1:48 p.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: District of Columbia
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: June 25, 2008
Closing Date: 2011
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
A non-profit monthly publication which reports on criminal justice issues and prison and jail-related civil litigation, with an emphasis on prisoners' rights.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
District of Columbia Office of the Attorney General (Washington, District of Columbia), State
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Content of Injunction:
Amount Defendant Pays: $75,290.00
Issues
General/Misc.: