Poitras v. DHS, No. 15-1091, 2019 WL 1569561 (D.D.C. Apr. 11, 2019) (Howell, J.)

Poitras v. DHS, No. 15-1091, 2019 WL 1569561 (D.D.C. Apr. 11, 2019) (Howell, J.)

Re:  Requests for records concerning "plaintiff and her repeated border stops and detentions at airports while traveling in pursuit of her journalistic endeavors"

Disposition:  Denying plaintiff's motion for attorney fees and costs

• Attorney Fees, Eligibility:  The court notes that "defendants concede that the plaintiff is eligible for attorneys' fees."
   
• Attorney Fees, Entitlement:  The court holds that "the plaintiff has not demonstrated an entitlement to an attorneys' fees award."  Regarding the first factor, the court finds that "this factor favors an award of attorneys' fees."  The court holds that, "[d]espite some public interest, the plaintiff's FOIA requests always have been about her access to records that would explain her own experiences . . . ."  "Here, however, the public benefit is stronger given both the plaintiff's notoriety and that the FOIA requests might reasonably been viewed as likely to shed light on regulation of air travel, a topic of broader public interest than SEC enforcement actions."  Regarding the second and third factors, the court finds that "[t]hrough her FOIA requests, the plaintiff discovered why she had been stopped at the border for six years."  "From the beginning, that was the motivation behind  . . . her FOIA requests."  "Nothing is wrong with self-interested FOIA requests, they just are less likely to result in an award of attorneys' fees."  "Consequently, this factor counsels against attorneys' fees."  Finally, the court finds that "the final factor moderately favors the defendants."  The court finds that "defendants' withholdings were not only reasonable, but ultimately were upheld."  Responding to plaintiff's argument, the court finds that "the FBI discovered these documents in preparation for its opposition to Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment."  "A single instance of oversight, quickly corrected, is not 'obdurate behavior.'"  "The FBI was not stonewalling, delaying, or repeatedly finding responsive documents."