Knight Institute and Freedom of Press Foundation v. DOJ – FOIA Suit for Records on Surveillance of Journalists

In October of 2017, the Knight Institute and Freedom of the Press Foundation filed Freedom of Information Act requests with the Justice Department, the National Security Agency, the CIA, and other federal agencies, seeking records concerning the surveillance of journalists and other investigative tactics that threaten the freedoms of speech, association, or the press. The requests followed Attorney General Jeff Sessions' recent statement that his department has more than tripled the number of leak investigations that were ongoing at the end of the last administration. Only two publicly available documents were produced in response, prompting the lawsuit.
Press Statements and Commentary
- 9/17/2018: Targeting Journalists Under FISA: New Documents Reveal DOJ’s Secret Rules
- 7/30/2018: FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide 2016 (DIOG) [searchable PDF]
- 7/14/2018: More Questions Than Answers from DOJ Letter About Journalist Surveillance
- 3/29/2018: Espionage Act Charges Against Former FBI Agent Raise Concerns
- 11/29/2017: Lawsuit Seeks Government Guidelines on Surveillance of Journalists as Leak Investigations Surge
Legal Documents
- 8/31/2018: Production from Justice Department's Office of Information Policy
- 4/23/2018: Schedule for Processing and Production
- 3/23/2018: Stipulation and Order Regarding Document Searches and Processing
- 3/12/2018: Pretrial Conference Order
- 11/29/2017: Complaint
- 10/10/2017: FOIA request