Operation Themis: US gov response to 2020 protests (Department of Justice, United States Marshals)

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

Seeking documents, memos, emails, powerpoint presentations and other notes that contain the phrase or discuss "Operation Themis," a name used internally in government to describe the federal response to 2020 domestic protests. Themis was an overarching term used between Defense Department agencies and the executives branch, among others, to discuss how the government was coordinating a mission to quell/control/calm domestic unrest following the 2020 police killing of George Floyd, an African American who died in police custody in Minneapolis. This FOIA is specifically requesting materials about the US government's coordination, enforcement and implementation efforts, which included the wide deployment of national guard units across the country in major urban areas. At the time, the National Guard was activated across roughly half of the U.S. The guard was deployed in numerous states, including Arizona, Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin (as well as the District of Columbia).

The term/codename/title would have been used at the executive level of agencies in communications with colleagues across government. It is vital the public understand how its military was deployed in 2020 amid nationwide protests.

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 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Christopher Bing