Documents / FOIA release

AARO records on attempts to engage with Grusch (FOIA 24-F-0266)

The Black Vault · 29 pages · text from the file's own layer

This FOIA release comes from the Department of Defense Freedom of Information Division. It answers request 24-F-0266 from John Greenewald of The Black Vault, and the response is dated March 21, 2024. It holds 26 partly redacted pages, including a January 8, 2024 AARO memorandum for record on repeated invitations to interview David Grusch, along with text messages, emails and authorization memos from DoD and ODNI. AARO concluded that Grusch had no intention of giving it information about his claims.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION DIVISION
1155 DEFENSE PENTAGON
WASHINGTON, DC 20301-1155
Ref: 24-F-0266
March 21, 2024
Mr. John Greenewald
The Black Vault, Inc.
27305 W. Live Oak Rd.
Suite #1203
Castaic, CA 91384
Dear Mr. Greenewald:
This is a final response to your November 2, 2023 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
request, a copy of which is enclosed for your convenience. We received your request on
November 2, 2023, and assigned it FOIA case number 24-F-0266. We ask that you use this
number when referring to your request.
The Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence & Security, a component of the Office
of the Secretary of Defense, conducted a search of their records systems and located 26 pages
determined to be responsive to your request. Mr. Paul Plescow, Senior Intelligence Officer, in
his capacity as an Initial Denial Authority, has determined that portions of the 26 responsive
pages are exempt from release pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 552 (b)(6), information which, if disclosed,
would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of the personal privacy of individuals; and
(b)(7)(E), which would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or
prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions if
such disclosure could reasonably be expected to risk circumvention of law. Please note that we
have considered the foreseeable harm standard when reviewing records and applying exemptions
under the FOIA in the processing of this request.
In this instance, fees for processing your request were below the threshold for requiring
payment. Please note that fees may be assessed on future requests.
If you have any questions or concerns about the foregoing or about the processing of your
request, please do not hesitate to contact the Action Officer assigned to your request, Brianna
Johnson, at brianna.n.johnson2.civ@mail.mil or 571-372-0409. Additionally, if you have
concerns about service received by our office, please contact a member of our Leadership Team
at 571-372-0498 or Toll Free at 866-574-4970.
Should you wish to inquire about mediation services, you may contact the OSD/JS FOIA
Public Liaison, Toni Fuentes, at 571-372-0462, or by email at OSD.FOIALiaison@mail.mil. You
may also contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives
and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services they offer. The contact
information for OGIS is as follows:

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FOIA release, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 29 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.