UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

JASON LEOPOLD

Beverly Hills, CA 90210,

RYAN NOAH SHAPIRO

Cambridge, MA 02141,


PLAINTIFFS
vs.

CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY,
Washington, DC 20505


DEFENDANT


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Judge _____________
Civil Action No. ____________


COMPLAINT


THE PARTIES

1. Plaintiff Jason Leopold is a citizen of California residing at
, Beverly Hills, CA 90210.
2. Plaintiff Ryan Noah Shapiro is a citizen of Massachusetts residing at
, Cambridge, MA 02141.
3. Mr. Leopold is an investigative journalist covering a wide-range of issues,
including Guantanamo, national security, counterterrorism, civil liberties, human rights, and
open government. His reporting has been published in The Wall Street Journal, The Financial
Times, Salon, The Guardian, The Los Angeles Times, The Nation, Vice, Truthout, Al Jazeera
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English and numerous other domestic and international publications. Currently, he is a
contributor to Al Jazeera America and is the editor-at-large for The Public Record.
4. Mr. Leopold seeks access to certain public records to write a news report for
distribution to the general public. His connections and relationships with a wide range of
domestic and international media organizations will ensure that any story he drafts based on the
information contained in these records will be published and reprinted.
5. Mr. Shapiro is a Ph.D. candidate in the Program in History, Anthropology, &
Science, Technology, and Society (HASTS) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is
an historian of the political functioning of national security and the policing of dissent. Shapiros
research and analysis have been featured in, among numerous other outlets, The Washington
Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press, NPR, BBC, The
Nation, Mother Jones, Democracy Now!, The Hill, McClatchy DC, PolicyMic, Fox News, The
Daily Caller, The Afro-American, Salon, and Vice News. Additionally, Shapiro has been invited
to present lectures pertaining to his research at numerous leading institutions, including Harvard
Law School, Yale Law School, the City University of New York Law School, the Kennedy
School of Government at Harvard University, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the
Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (Berlin).
6. Mr. Shapiro seeks access to certain public records to write popular news and/or
scholarly articles for distribution to the academic and general public. His connections and
relationships with a wide range of domestic and international media organizations will ensure
that any story he drafts based on the information contained in these documents will be published
and reprinted.
7. Defendant Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an agency of the United States.
8. The CIA has possession, custody and control of the records Plaintiffs seek.


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JURISDICTION AND VENUE

9. This action arises under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 USC 552.
10. This Court has jurisdiction over the parties and subject matter pursuant to 5 USC
552(a)(4)(B).
11. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 5 USC 552(a)(4)(B).

STATEMENT OF FACTS

BACKGROUND
12. There is an ongoing dispute between the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and
the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) over the SSCIs review of the CIAs former
Detention and Interrogation Program.
13. The CIA and SSCI reached an agreement which would permit SSCI staffers to
review CIA documents at a secure CIA facility in Virginia. A written agreement or series of
agreements specified the parameters regarding the staffers access to CIA documents.
14. The CIA has alleged that SSCI staffers illegally removed a document known as
the Panetta Internal Review.
15. Senator Feinstein, Chair of the SSCI, has alleged that the CIA violated its written
agreement with the SSCI and possibly violated criminal laws by searching SSCI computers
located at the CIA facility in Virginia.

PLAINTIFFS FOIA REQUEST

16. On April 12, 2014, Plaintiffs sent a FOIA request to the CIA via First Class
Certified Mail (70122920000142794952) requesting:

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A copy of all written agreements and correspondence between the SSCI (including
Senators on the committee, their staff, and committee staff) and the CIA (or its agents,
including contractors) which set forth the terms under which SSCI staffers would be
permitted to access CIA documents at the secure CIA facility in Virginia

All records documenting any CIA investigation into the search of SSCIs computers at
the secure facility in Virginia, including any records generated by the CIAs Inspector
General in the course of any investigation; records referring the incident(s) to the
Department of Justice for investigation; and correspondence between the SSCI (including
Senators on the committee, their staff, and committee staff) and the CIA (or its agents,
including contractors) which discuss the event

All records documenting any CIA investigation into the removal of the Panetta Review,
including any records generated by the CIAs Inspector General in the course of any
investigation; records referring the incident(s) to the Department of Justice for
investigation; and correspondence between the SSCI (including Senators on the
committee, their staff, and committee staff) and the CIA (or its agents, including
contractors) which discuss the event

A copy of the contract, the request for proposal, proposal, bid solicitation, and bid for any
CIA contractor responsible for reviewing records relating to the CIAs former Detention
and Interrogation Program before access was provided to SSCI staff

A copy of any and all talking points (in draft and final form), and any and all guidance
issued to the CIAs Office of Public Affairs, about the ongoing dispute between the
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
(SSCI) over the SSCIs review of the CIAs former Detention and Interrogation Program

17. In their request to the CIA, Plaintiffs requested expedited processing and a fee
waiver.
18. According to the records of the U.S. Postal Service, the CIA received Plaintiffs
FOIA request on April 16, 2014.
19. On April 24, 2014, Plaintiffs received a communication from the CIA
acknowledging receipt, and separately assigning a tracking number to Mr. Leopold (F-2014-
01381) and Mr. Shapiro (F-2014-01382). This communication denied Plaintiffs request for
expedited processing but provided no ruling on their request for a fee waiver.

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DEFENDANTS FAILURE TO RESPOND TO PLAINTIFFS FOIA REQUEST


20. The CIAs response to Plaintiffs request was due twenty calendar days after the
CIA received it on April 16, 2014, which would have been May 14, 2014.
21. As of the filing of this Complaint, Plaintiffs have not received a response to their
FOIA request to the CIA with a determination as to whether the CIA will disclose the requested
record.
COUNT I:
VIOLATION OF FOIA
22. This Count realleges and incorporates by reference all of the preceding
paragraphs.
23. Plaintiffs are entitled to expedited processing on their request to the CIA.
24. Defendant has violated FOIA by denying Plaintiffs request for expedited
processing.
25. Plaintiffs have been and will continue to be irreparably harmed until Defendant is
ordered to grant Plaintiffs request for expedited processing on their FOIA request.
26. Defendant has also violated FOIA by improperly withholding the requested
records.








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PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs respectfully request that this Court:
(1) Declare Defendants failure to comply with FOIA to be unlawful;
(2) Declare that Plaintiffs are entitled to expedited processing of their FOIA request;
(3) Order Defendant to process the requested records without further delay and release all
nonexempt portions to Plaintiffs without charging Plaintiffs fees;
(4) Grant Plaintiffs an award of attorney fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred in
this action pursuant to 5 USC 552(a)(4)(E)(i);
(5) Grant Plaintiffs such other and further relief which the Court deems proper.

Respectfully Submitted,

/s/ Jeffrey Light_______________
Jeffrey L. Light
D.C. Bar #485360
1712 Eye St., NW
Suite 915
Washington, DC 20006
(202)277-6213
[email protected]

Counsel for Plaintiffs

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