Case: Democracy Forward Foundation v. U.S. Marshals Service

This is a case about government transparency and the public’s right to access information about possible executive branch interference in the federal judiciary. On March 14, 2025, the Democracy Forward Foundation, a nonprofit organization focused on government accountability, filed this lawsuit against the U.S. Marshals Service ("USMS") in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The Plaintiff had previously filed several requests under the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA"), seeking information and documentation relating to (1) potential inappropriate communications between USMS and federal judges about pending cases related to the January 6, 2021 riots at the U.S. Capitol, potentially following direction from the Department of Government Efficiency ("DOGE"); and (2) USMS’s role in enforcing court orders in light of Vice President JD Vance’s comments declaring that “judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.” Democracy Forward brought this action after the Defendant failed to respond to its FOIA requests within the time period required by law. The case was assigned to Judge Timothy J. Kelly.

The plaintiff sued the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552. Represented by its in-house counsel, Democracy Forward sought injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees. They claimed that USMS unlawfully failed to respond to multiple FOIA requests submitted in early 2025, which sought records concerning the agency’s interactions with federal judges and White House officials in sensitive and potentially politically charged situations. Democracy Forward’s requests stemmed from widespread media reports indicating that USMS personnel may have communicated inappropriately with federal judges handling January 6-related cases, allegedly under direction from DOGE, a controversial federal office. Additional reporting raised alarms that DOGE leader Elon Musk’s private security team had been deputized by USMS, and that DOGE associates had improperly used the Marshals Service to gain access to federal facilities. These developments sparked public concern about executive overreach, especially after Vice President J.D. Vance publicly questioned the judiciary’s power to restrain the executive branch.

In response to these developments, Democracy Forward submitted four separate FOIA requests between January 27 and February 12, 2025. These included requests for communications between USMS and DOGE, phone logs and directives involving the Executive Office of the President, and records related to the enforcement of federal court orders. Each request was acknowledged and assigned a tracking number, and USMS granted fee waivers. On February 14, the agency asked Democracy Forward to consolidate the requests into a single administrative request. The Foundation agreed, provided that the search scope would extend to the date of the actual search, and also agreed to narrow certain custodian and keyword fields to facilitate processing.

Despite these accommodations, the USMS failed to issue any final determination within the statutory deadline. Democracy Forward therefore alleged that it had constructively exhausted its administrative remedies, as permitted under FOIA when agencies fail to timely respond. The lawsuit seeks a court order compelling USMS to conduct a comprehensive search for responsive documents and to release all non-exempt records. Democracy Forward also asked for a Vaughn index describing any withheld documents and invoked its right to recover litigation costs and attorney’s fees under FOIA’s fee-shifting provision.

The case is ongoing.