Opinion
CRIMINAL ACTION NO. 95-0040, SECTION "K" (4)
January 16, 2003
MINUTE ENTRY
Defendant, Tommie Anderson, has filed a motion for a free copy of the transcripts made of the hearings before the Grand Jury in his case. He requests that this Court forward and file the transcripts with the clerk's office of the United States Supreme Court. He argues that he is entitled to these transcripts pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and because "it is this Appellant's understanding that it is proper under such circumstances to have the transcripts of the testimony and the make up or [sic] the grand jury . . . in order that the Supreme Court may, if it chooses, examine the transcript for the purpose of ascertaining its contents." (Rec. Doc. 105)
In Valenti v. United States Dept. of Justice, 503 F. Supp. 230, 232 (E.D. La. 1980), Judge Sear denied a plaintiff's request for grand jury transcripts, finding that grand jury transcripts are not covered by the Freedom of Information Act, and therefore the Court cannot be compelled to disclose them. The Court stated that
The FOIA requires that "each agency shall make available to the public information" of a variety of kinds consisting mainly of agency records. 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(3). In defining the word agency, the Act itself specifically exempts "the courts of the United States" from the definition. 5 U.S.C. § 551(1)(B). The grand jury has traditionally been characterized as an arm of the court . . . .
Because the grand jury is an appendage of the court, the records of the grand jury are court records, (citations omitted) not agency records are expressly exempt from the mandatory disclosure requirements of the FOIA.Valenti, 503 F. Supp. at 233.
Neither is Anderson entitled to the grand jury transcripts pursuant to Fed.R.Crim.P. 6(e). Under Rule 6(e), parties seeking grand jury transcripts must show that "the material they seek is needed to avoid possible injustice in another judicial proceeding, that the need for disclosure is greater than the need for continued secrecy, and that their request is structured to cover only the material so needed." Valenti, 503 F. Supp. at 234 (citing Douglas Oil Co. of Calif. v. Petrol Stops Northwest, 441 U.S. 211 (1979).
Anderson has provided the Court with no reason why he should be provided with a transcript of the grand jury testimony which satisfies the Rule 6(e) standard. He has shown no particularized need for the transcript: he has not demonstrated that he needs it in connection with another judicial proceeding, or that disclosing the transcript will avoid some paramount injustice that outweighs the public interest in maintaining the secrecy of the grand jury proceeding. He merely cites an ambiguous notion, without relying on legal authority, that the proceeding should be sealed and forwarded to the Supreme Court to review "if it chooses . . . for the purpose of ascertaining its contents." (Rec. Doc. 105). This argument is unsupported and offers no justification that is cognizable according to legal precedent. Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED that Mr. Anderson's Motion for Transcript of Grand Jury Minutes to Accompany Records on Appeal of FOIA to the United States Supreme Court" (Rec. Doc. 105) is hereby DENIED.