Opinion ID: 421806
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: jurisdiction over doj documents

Text: 11 Appellant's first allegation of error is that the District Court improperly held that it lacked jurisdiction over five FBI documents 18 that had originated with DOJ and that the FBI had then referred back to DOJ for direct response to appellant's FOIA request. The lower court sua sponte dismissed the complaint with respect to these documents on the theory that appellant's proper recourse would be against DOJ itself, an agency not a party to this litigation. 19 In so doing, the District Court followed the reasoning of a prior District Court opinion, McGehee v. CIA, 533 F.Supp. 861, 868-869 (D.D.C.1982), rev'd, 697 F.2d 1095 (D.C.Cir.1983), 20 which held that an agency could properly refer documents responsive to FOIA requests to the agency that created the documents in the first place, especially if those documents were classified or contained sensitive information. 12 The District Court's decision in McGehee, however, is no longer good law. This court has since reversed that lower court holding, resolving the basic jurisdictional issue common to both cases. In McGehee v. CIA we plainly held that when an agency receives a FOIA request for 'agency records' in its possession, it must take responsibility for processing the request. It cannot simply refuse to act on the ground that the documents originated elsewhere. 697 F.2d 1095, 1110 (D.C.Cir.1983). A District Court with jurisdiction of the agency possessing the disputed documents will therefore have jurisdiction to resolve the status of those documents, no matter what their origin. 13 In light of our McGehee decision, we must reverse the District Court's dismissal in this case of the five FBI documents referred to DOJ. We remand so that the FBI may present an updated justification for withholding all or part of those documents. 21 Moreover, to foreclose the possibility of further unnecessary delay in this case, 22 we direct the FBI to file the appropriate affidavit within 30 days after issuance of the mandate. If the agency cannot show that any FOIA exemption properly [229 U.S.App.D.C. 378] applies, the District Court should order release of these documents.