Rivera Rodriguez v. DOJ, No. 19-02510, 2020 WL 2079442 (D.D.C. Apr. 30, 2020) (Mehta, J.)

Rivera Rodriguez v. DOJ, No. 19-02510, 2020 WL 2079442 (D.D.C. Apr. 30, 2020) (Mehta, J.)

Re:  Request for records concerning grand jury indictment of plaintiff

Disposition:  Granting in part and denying in part defendant's motion for summary judgment

• Litigation Considerations, Adequacy of Search:  The court holds that "[j]udgment . . . is entered in Defendant's favor as to the adequacy of the search."  The court explains that "Defendant's declarant . . . sufficiently explains why a search of 'no other record system was likely to produce responsive documents,' and 'show[s], with reasonable detail' that the agency's approach 'was reasonably calculated to uncover all relevant documents' . . . ."  "She also disclosed 'the search terms and the type of search performed.'"
   
• Exemption 3 & Litigation Considerations, Vaughn Index/Declaration:  The court holds that "[b]ased on [defendant's] Declaration and the Vaughn Index, the court cannot determine whether each withheld record, if disclosed, 'would tend to reveal some secret aspect of the grand jury's investigation.'"  "That evaluation is not possible, because the Vaughn Index places the grand jury material in three broad categories – 'Grand Jury Records,' 'Grand Jury Transcripts,' and 'Grand Jury Preliminary Matters' – that do not allow the court to make the required 'touchstone' assessment."  "An agency is permitted to take a categorical approach, . . . but the categories used here are too general to permit a meaningful inquiry."