Case: James Madison Project (Politico) v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security
1:17-cv-00388 | U.S. District Court for the District of District of Columbia
Filed Date: March 3, 2017
Closed Date: July 31, 2018
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Case Summary
On March 3, 2017, this suit was filed under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by the James Madison Project and Politico. The suit aimed to shed light on how the Department of Homeland Security implemented President Trump's January 27 Executive Order (EO) 13769, the ban on admission to the U.S. of nationals of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Specifically, plaintiffs sought information about how the Department of Homeland Security coordinated with private and commercial airlines following EO 13769's rollout. The complaint sought an order for the defendants to disclose the requested records in their entirety.
Private counsel represented the plaintiffs. The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and was assigned to Judge Amit Mehta.
In the complaint, plaintiffs cited the initial chaos caused by the EO 13769 and alleged that, despite the issuance of emergency stays, Customs and Border Protection agents often refused to comply with court orders. Plaintiffs previously submitted FOIA requests to TSA, CBP, ICE, USCIS, and DHS, but had not received a substantive response from any of the agencies. Plaintiffs alleged that they had a legal right to the information sought and that they had exhausted all administrative remedies for obtaining it.
Separately, that same day, the James Madison Project and the executive editor of the Daily Beast filed another FOIA lawsuit seeking intra- and inter-agency communications relating to the scope and operation of the EO. That lawsuit is described here.
On Mar. 6, 2017, the President rescinded the Jan. 27 EO and replaced it with a narrower one, Executive Order 13780.
According to a joint status report filed on Jun. 16, the government was in the process of conducting the requisite search pursuant to FOIA request as of that date. The report stated that DHS, USCIS, and ICE had no responsive records. The report further stated that TSA released some records, and that TSA and CBP may have additional responsive records.
On January 19, 2018, the parties submitted a joint status report stating that "agency components have now completed their processing of Plaintiffs' requests. DHS, USCIS, and ICE located no records responsive to Plaintiffs' FOIA requests. TSA produced 53 pages of responsive records, and CBP produced 29 pages of responsive records. TSA referred certain information from its 53 pages of records to DHS, and that information has now been fully processed." The parties sought further time to decide on whether further issues required briefing. A status report filed on March 20 indicated that DHS was still in the process of fulfilling the request, and that it anticipated completing production of responsive records by August 2018.
A status report filed on May 21, 2018 noted that DHS completed processing the FOIA request and that the parties sought to resolve the matter without further litigation. The plaintiffs stated that they would not challenge the adequacy of DHS' searches. On July 23, the parties filed a status report indicating they were close to finalizing a settlement agreement.
On July 31, 2018, the parties filed a stipulation of dismissal. The case is now closed.
Summary Authors
Jamie Kessler (6/26/2017)
Virginia Weeks (8/5/2018)
Gabriela Hybel (2/11/2018)
Related Cases
People
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4613604/parties/james-madison-project-v-department-of-homeland-security/
Mehta, Amit Priyavadan (District of Columbia)
Moss, Bradley Prescott (District of Columbia)
Berns, Matthew (District of Columbia)
Tulis, Elizabeth (New York)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Docket
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4613604/james-madison-project-v-department-of-homeland-security/
Last updated March 24, 2026, 4:52 a.m.
Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 1.0 & 2.0 FOIA cases
Key Dates
Filing Date: March 3, 2017
Closing Date: July 31, 2018
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
The James Madison Project ("JMP") is an organization established in 1998 "to promote government accountability and the reduction of secrecy, as well as [to educate] the public on issues relating to intelligence and national security." Other plaintiffs are senior reporters for Politico.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Non-profit NON-religious organization
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Federal
Department of Homeland Security
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
FOIA (Freedom of Information Act), 5 U.S.C. § 552
Other Dockets:
District of District of Columbia 1:17-cv-00388
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff OR Mixed
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Content of Injunction:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Discrimination Basis:
National origin discrimination
Affected National Origin/Ethnicity(s):
Immigration/Border:
Case Summary of James Madison Project (Politico) v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, http://www.dev.clearinghouse.net/case/15678/ (last updated 2/11/2018).