Lion Raisins Inc. v. United States Department of Agriculture

MEMORANDUM **

In an earlier appeal, we reversed in part and remanded the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) in an action brought under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. §§ 552 , et seq. (“FOIA”). Lion Raisins Inc. v. U.S. Dep’t of Agric., 354 F.3d 1072, 1085 (9th Cir. 2004). Lion Raisins Inc. (“Lion”) challenges the district court’s ruling on remand, which approved the withholding of two administrative reports of an investigation of Lion (the “Reports”). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

The USDA’s publicly-submitted affidavits provided an adequate factual basis from which the district court could have concluded that the withheld portions of the Reports were exempt from disclosure under FOIA’s law enforcement exemption, 5 U.S.C. § 552 (b)(7)(A). Doyle v. FBI, 722 F.2d 554, 555 (9th Cir.1983); Church of Scientology v. U.S. Dep’t of the Army, 611 F.2d 738, 742 (9th Cir.1979). The Agricultural Marketing Service’s David Trykowski was personally involved in both investigations underlying the Reports and provided detailed and specific information supporting the application of the…