American Civil Liberties Union v. Department of Justice
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Mariajames, J.
ORDER ON CROSS MOTIONS FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Re: Dkt. Nos. 23,
INTRODUCTION
On July 31, 2012, Plaintiffs American Civil Liberties Union and San Francisco Bay Guardian filed this lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”), 5 U.S.C. § 552 , seeking to compel the release of documents of the United State Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California regarding use of location tracking technology in Northern California. Compl., Dkt. No. 1 at ¶ 1. Pending before the Court are Plaintiffs’ and Defendant United States Department of Justice’s (the “DOJ” or the “Government”) cross-motions for partial summary judgment. Dkt. Nos. 23 (Gov.Mot.), 25 (PI. Mot.). On September 5, 2013, the Court held a hearing on the motions. Having considered the parties’ positions, relevant legal authority, and the record in this case, the Court GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PART the DOJ’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, and GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PART Plaintiffs’ Cross-Motion for Partial Summary Judgment for the reasons set forth below.
BACKGROUND
On April 13, 2012, Plaintiffs submitted to the DOJ a FOIA request seeking information about the federal government’s use…