FBI/DOJ FOIA consult (Cleveland Police Department)

Dear Emma Best,
Thank you for your interest in public records of the City of Cleveland. Your request has been received and is being processed in accordance with the public records laws. Your request was received in this office on 8/27/2019 and has been given the reference number P011736-082719 for tracking purposes.
Records Requested: To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Ohio Open Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

Copies of any emails, letters, memos or other records of consultations regarding public records requests (FOI/FOIL/FOIA etc.) with either the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Agency components.

I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I have previously written about the government and its activities, with some reaching over 100,000 readers in outlets such as Gizmodo, MuckRock, Motherboard, Property of the People, Unicorn Riot, and The Outline, among others. As such, as I have a reasonable expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through non-profits such as the library Internet Archive and the journalist non-profit MuckRock, disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself. As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular subject in advance.

As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days.

Sincerely,

Emma Best

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://accounts.muckrock.com/accounts/login/?url_auth_token=AAAVU4bGnxl6w3Xzoo_7VqUR_Lc%3A1i2Z8p%3AUuV-HvQEqXkIGpZBh3IhKe3JZ_o&next=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.muckrock.com%2Faccounts%2Flogin%2F%3Fnext%3D%252Faccounts%252Fagency_login%252Fcleveland-police-department-661%252Ffbidoj-foia-consult-cleveland-police-department-79564%252F%253F
Your request will be forwarded to the relevant city department(s) to locate the information you seek and to determine the volume and any costs associated with satisfying your request. You will be contacted about the availability and/or provided with copies of the records in question. PLEASE NOTE: The public records law does not require a governmental body to create new information, to do legal research, or to answer questions.

You can monitor the progress of your request at the link below and you will receive an email when your request has been completed. Again, thank you for using the Cleveland Public Records Center. (https://u8387778.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=xSfKPyHO1-2F4Mny2NCLJVujkzUkLWgqWH0U6vFlmMNON-2FyUogjhz03SiQFShbmM5gEw6pGAIIO90o3QThqZpgaDvwzcu0Z1mYJgNQNJnyDe4-3D_LHZzoKFfM6-2FV70V51igmhROjVTNBanT4JDHAO9sv-2BBZh6QzpxgyByFgGRxt5b7FpEIx-2FZiX3i82dvMV-2FAsIjMj3i06ZQMYKZKMGK8LH0ln-2BVID6qUKqTaUrPMDEvc0-2BF-2FpdhNOK59YQLmlFDN8ibMEw6I-2B3L-2FmyJonQ75a0WWO0QZw05b4Kpbmf76F6eS2jCahIt6oTWzHDm4IHpcMW3HYRKZAFlBMYBYvK9bVgBFa6dql6PwMheBx2tk6KkdUEeRk05nQMbfN6XDPSnuf5PstNyqT-2BPCKlQE-2Bb-2Fl2-2BSbluELD75-2BIoGROx4gwdSTIUh6bVEjMqefjowvmSVcO-2FvFO7ZS0LvRBGN2XHDQBB7QTG9r8MkIPujY-2FJZHPtJUJbj756xUemR7RoOSXDzKrrk6g-3D-3D)
City of Cleveland

To monitor the progress or update this request please log into the Cleveland Public Records Center. (https://u8387778.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=xSfKPyHO1-2F4Mny2NCLJVujkzUkLWgqWH0U6vFlmMNON-2FyUogjhz03SiQFShbmM5gEw6pGAIIO90o3QThqZpgaDvwzcu0Z1mYJgNQNJnyDe4-3D_LHZzoKFfM6-2FV70V51igmhROjVTNBanT4JDHAO9sv-2BBZh6QzpxgyByFgGRxt5b7FpEIx-2FZiX3i82dvMV-2FAsIjMj3i06ZQMYKZKMGK8LH0ln-2BVID6qUKqTaUrPMDEvc0-2BF-2FpdhNOK59YQLmlFDN8ibMEw6I-2B3L-2FmyJonQ75a0WWO0QZw05b4Kpbmf76F6eS2jCahIt6oTWzHDm4IHpcMW3HYRKZAFlBMYBYvK9bVgBFa6dql6PwMheBx2tk6KkdUEelTS3cLTVDhl8l4gEsRPiHeCNGx8M-2FC-2Fb2ZtfAqO7PNJGy0HGZVO70e3tZcRHcnFIeOQ9UGcANxvWcBOrhbixELBlbGX4yKyYtt-2F6WxmHtV9iiBhSq-2BkPTS4NWXF83OW5TPAUA7cit2xuDBx47lzvkw-3D-3D)

--- Please respond above this line ---
RE: PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST of August 27, 2019, Reference #P011736-082719.
Dear Emma Best, The City of Cleveland received a public record request from you on August 27, 2019. You requested the following:
“To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Ohio Open Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

Copies of any emails, letters, memos or other records of consultations regarding public records requests (FOI/FOIL/FOIA etc.) with either the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Agency components.

I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I have previously written about the government and its activities, with some reaching over 100,000 readers in outlets such as Gizmodo, MuckRock, Motherboard, Property of the People, Unicorn Riot, and The Outline, among others. As such, as I have a reasonable expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through non-profits such as the library Internet Archive and the journalist non-profit MuckRock, disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself. As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular subject in advance.

As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days.

Sincerely,

Emma Best

Upload documents directly:” In response, this request is overly broad to the extent that it does not identify the requested records with sufficient clarity as required in State ex rel. Dillery v. Icsman (2001), 92 Ohio St.3d 312, 314-315 and State ex rel. Glasgow v. Jones, 119 Ohio St.3d 391, 2008-Ohio-4788 at ¶17. Although you have identified the subject of the communications, it is not possible to search all City communications to determine if those communications address that subject. The City is not required to search through every record it keeps to determine whether that record concerns or identifies the subjects you have outlined. State ex rel. Kerner v. State Teachers Retirement Board, 82 Ohio St.3d 273, 1988-Ohio-242, and State ex rel. White v. Goldsberry, 85 Ohio St.3d 153, 1999-Ohio-447." Public Safety - Public Records Request - P011736-082719 Please note:

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* Records may be viewed/downloaded up to 3 times. You have up to 30 days to view/download records. If you have any questions, or wish to discuss this further, you can reply to this email, go to the Cleveland Public Records Center and Send a New Message. (https://u8387778.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=xSfKPyHO1-2F4Mny2NCLJVujkzUkLWgqWH0U6vFlmMNON-2FyUogjhz03SiQFShbmM5gEw6pGAIIO90o3QThqZpgaDvwzcu0Z1mYJgNQNJnyDe4-3D_LHZzoKFfM6-2FV70V51igmhROjVTNBanT4JDHAO9sv-2BBZh6QzpxgyByFgGRxt5b7FpEIx-2FZiX3i82dvMV-2FAsIjMhDV-2BpCCgAkMTuuIu0OUz-2Febz-2FdFHqmfnr-2FmltCmApWOBDf5x2qTV7DsYOn-2BtPQnm0AbzTYGC-2B4laOj-2F-2FZd0ZvW6YPOj3W4AixF8mmR7gm182P2Zdi-2Bl06aEnj2c9yLqVvaEPlKx-2BnFJQjaaz0IxDPM5We9dXdW3LgYHRL4fyPtU5t2Z-2FTop6xy9W3iMLLJZlzhZ6fQiLTBk7AOVRCX04r5YJLGDGHoA1H2WdvJJCHe9pipOdDc96x865XM-2FxkErJwiNHK5e5G48cWPkn2RkIUZJt6TgeyJRrLqoS6akPd1c-2B5okF0t1oF4G4byoMW0Baw-3D-3D) Sincerely, City of Cleveland Public Records
To monitor the progress or update this request please log into the Cleveland Public Records Center. (https://u8387778.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=xSfKPyHO1-2F4Mny2NCLJVujkzUkLWgqWH0U6vFlmMNON-2FyUogjhz03SiQFShbmM5gY4cVQgpH-2FF7kU3DGg7Po2fGJCezK4N9-2B6oFxZKvbfr8-3D_LHZzoKFfM6-2FV70V51igmhROjVTNBanT4JDHAO9sv-2BBZh6QzpxgyByFgGRxt5b7FpEIx-2FZiX3i82dvMV-2FAsIjMhDV-2BpCCgAkMTuuIu0OUz-2Febz-2FdFHqmfnr-2FmltCmApWOBDf5x2qTV7DsYOn-2BtPQnm0AbzTYGC-2B4laOj-2F-2FZd0ZvW6YPOj3W4AixF8mmR7gm182P2Zdi-2Bl06aEnj2c9yLqVvaEPlKx-2BnFJQjaaz0IxDPM5We9dXdW3LgYHRL4fyPtUFQ6kAeYQ-2BTMTiYXx-2FWPq3mk03eicivfZuipxU6iXdLemB8b9YJZBthx37ftyVS2aqo4-2BOO8RGBDmghBxrIrqdmVjHlRVwq8ox4UN1OdJ02pr5my0uFjbJmQfqhJhaZmJK77N-2B-2BIl1P4Wz2TLGZMUFg-3D-3D)