Torres v. DOJ, No. 23-4810, 2023 WL 8452401 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 5, 2023) (Swain, C.J.)

Torres v. DOJ, No. 23-4810, 2023 WL 8452401 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 5, 2023) (Swain, C.J.)

Re:  Requests for records concerning plaintiff and his family

Disposition:  Dismissing plaintiff’s consolidated actions

• Litigation Considerations, Pleadings:  The court finds that “Plaintiff's allegations are insufficient to show that the FBI improperly withheld agency records.”  “The Court therefore dismisses this consolidated action for failure to state a claim on which relief may be granted.”  The court relates that “[i]n [one request], Plaintiff asked the FBI to provide information regarding the alleged assassination of his family members and the FBI’s alleged ‘COINTELPRO[ ] domestic assassinations program,’ spanning a period of 45 years.”  “In [his second request], he requested information regarding investigations of him, spanning a period of 42 years.”  The court finds that “[e]ven assuming that that the FBI possessed such records, Plaintiff fails to provide the reasons why the FBI denied his FOIA requests.”  “Moreover, with respect to [plaintiff’s second request] it is unclear whether that FOIA request is pending with the FBI.”
  
  However, “[a]ssuming for the purposes of this order that Plaintiff’s FOIA requests were considered and denied by the FBI or the DOJ, the Court grants Plaintiff leave to file an amended complaint to state facts in support of his two FOIA requests.”  “Specifically, in any amended complaint, he must state the following for each FOIA request with the FBI or the DOJ:  (1) the date the FOIA request was made, and the date the final appeal was decided; (2) the FOIA request and appeal numbers assigned by the FBI or the DOJ; (3) a description of each request made to the FBI or the DOJ; and (4) the reasons the FBI or the DOJ gave for denying Plaintiff’s FOIA requests.”