Department of Treasury v. Chicago
The City of Chicago (City) brought an action under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) against the United States Department of Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), seeking certain records maintained by ATF regarding the multiple sales of handguns and the tracing of firearms involved in crimes. Both parties moved for summary judgment on the issue of whether certain FOIA exemptions protected some of the requested data from disclosure. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the City and held that none of the FOIA exemptions permit ATF to withhold any of the requested records. The court of appeals affirmed, holding that neither exemption 7(A) nor exemption 7(C) to the FOIA applies.
Questions Presented:
1. Whether individual names and addresses in the Trace Database and the Multiple Sales Database are exempt from compelled disclosure under FOIA Exemption 7(C), which encompasses ”records or
information compiled for law enforcement purposes” when the production of such records ”could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy.”
2. Whether various categories of information contained in the Trace Database are protected from disclosure under FOIA Exemption 7(A), which encompasses law enforcement records when the production
of such records ”could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings.”
