Mary Jo Warth v. Department of Justice and United States of America

Appellant Warth appeals from the district court’s dismissal of her suit brought under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552 (FOIA). Her appeal presents one issue. It is whether a copy of a trial transcript possessed by an executive agency is an “agency record” subject to production under the provisions of the FOIA. The district court held that the transcript was a court document and, as such, was exempt from disclosure under the FOIA. We note jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and affirm.

Appellant is a free-lance writer currently writing a book about certain traffickers in illegal drugs, known as the “Brotherhood of Eternal Love” (Brotherhood). To assist in her research, appellant sought the transcript of a criminal trial in which three principal members of the Brotherhood were convicted on drug-related charges. Appellant made a formal FOIA request to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the production of a copy of the trial transcript possessed by the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California. The DOJ denied appellant’s request, stating that “[t]he transcripts of trials are public documents which should be obtained from the Clerk of the Court,…