In FOIA Body Scanner Litigation, EPIC "Substantially Prevails," as Court Awards Fees to EPIC

A Federal Court has ruled that EPIC "substantially prevailed" in its open government lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security for information about the agency's airport body scanner program and has awarded attorneys fees to EPIC. EPIC's Freedom of Information Act case led to the disclosure of hundreds of pages of documents, including procurement specifications, operational requirements, contracts, and traveler complaints and revealed that the machines are designed to store and transfer images. The Court found that "The records disclosed to the plaintiff in the course of this litigation have provided a public benefit in that they were covered extensively in the news and cited frequently as a news source during the public debate surrounding the use of whole body imaging devices in airports." EPIC had also asked the Court to reconsider an earlier ruling, in light of a recent Supreme Court FOIA decision Milner v. Dept. of Navy. The Court denied that request. For more information, see EPIC: EPIC v. DHS (FOIA, Body Scanners) and EPIC: EPIC v. DHS (Suspension of the Body Scanner Program).

September 12, 2011| Share: