National Archives and Records Administration v. Favish
541 U.S. 157 (2004)
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Rule of Law:
Under FOIA Exemption 7(C), surviving family members have a cognizable privacy interest in the death-scene images of a deceased relative. To overcome this privacy interest with a public interest claim of government misconduct, the requester must produce evidence that would warrant a belief by a reasonable person that the alleged impropriety might have occurred.
Facts:
- Vincent Foster, Jr., a deputy counsel to the President, was found dead in Fort Marcy Park.
- The initial investigation by the U.S. Park Police concluded Foster committed suicide and took 10 color photographs of his body at the scene.
- Four subsequent independent investigations by the FBI, congressional committees, and two independent counsels (Robert Fiske and Kenneth Starr) also concluded Foster's death was a suicide.
- Despite these five investigations, a citizen named Allan Favish remained skeptical of the official findings.
- Favish submitted a FOIA request to the Office of Independent Counsel (OIC) seeking 11 photographs from the investigation, including 10 depicting Foster's body.
- Foster's family strongly objected to the release of the photographs, with his sister submitting a sworn declaration that disclosure would cause extreme emotional distress, invade their privacy, and lead to harassment.
Procedural Posture:
- The Office of Independent Counsel (OIC) denied Allan Favish's FOIA request for photographs of Vincent Foster's body, citing Exemption 7(C).
- Favish sued the OIC in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to compel production.
- The District Court granted summary judgment to the OIC, finding the Foster family's privacy interests outweighed the public interest asserted by Favish.
- Favish (appellant) appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, with the OIC as appellee.
- The Ninth Circuit reversed, holding that a requester need not show knowledge of misfeasance, and remanded for the District Court to review the photos and re-balance the interests.
- On remand, the District Court ordered the release of five of the photographs.
- The OIC (appellant) appealed this decision to the Ninth Circuit, with Favish as appellee.
- The Ninth Circuit affirmed the release of four of the photographs.
- The OIC (petitioner) petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari, which was granted.
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Issue:
Does FOIA Exemption 7(C), which protects against an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy in law enforcement records, permit a federal agency to withhold graphic death-scene photographs of a deceased individual when the decedent's family objects to their release and the requester alleges government misconduct without producing credible evidence to support the claim?
Opinions:
Majority - Justice Kennedy
Yes. FOIA Exemption 7(C) permits a federal agency to withhold the photographs because the family's significant privacy interest is not outweighed by a public interest that is unsupported by credible evidence. The court held first that the concept of "personal privacy" under Exemption 7(C) is a broad one that extends beyond the individual who is the subject of the records to include the surviving family members' own right to privacy. This right is rooted in long-standing common law and cultural traditions that recognize a family's interest in protecting the memory and dignity of the deceased and shielding themselves from the anguish that would result from the public circulation of graphic death-scene images. Second, the court established a new standard for the balancing test required by the exemption. Where a requester asserts a public interest in uncovering government misconduct to overcome a privacy interest, that requester cannot rely on a "bare suspicion." Instead, the requester must produce evidence that would warrant a belief by a reasonable person that the alleged government impropriety might have occurred. In this case, Favish produced no such evidence, offering only speculation against the unanimous conclusions of five official investigations. Therefore, the Foster family's weighty privacy interest outweighs the unsubstantiated public interest in disclosure, making the invasion of privacy "unwarranted" under the statute.
Analysis:
This decision significantly clarifies the scope of FOIA Exemption 7(C). It formally establishes a survivorship privacy interest for family members in graphic images of deceased relatives, expanding the concept of "personal privacy" under FOIA. More critically, it creates a new, heightened evidentiary standard for requesters alleging government misconduct as their public interest justification for disclosure. By requiring more than "bare suspicion"—a credible showing of potential wrongdoing—the Court makes it substantially more difficult for individuals to use FOIA for fishing expeditions based on speculation or conspiracy theories, thereby strengthening privacy protections for sensitive law enforcement records.
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