writ of mandamus

What is the name of your state?florida
I have submitted a petition for writ of mandamus because i requested documents via FOIA, but have received no reply...
well...after filing...I was told that "Mandamus" is only for "incarcerated inmates"... but, this is NOT stated in the statute...however, there is a statement regading other remedies...so I am seeking input...am I mistaken, or can a Writ of Mandamus be used to comple compliance with FOIA request?
Thanx for the help...

A Writ of Mandamus is an order from the court to compel a government or other legally obligated entity to perform a duty for which they hold a statutory duty to perform.

Your FOI request not being honored is NOT a statutory obligation until a court has ruled on the merits of the request and it's subsequent denial.

You jumped the gun here. If you are being denied the documents then you need for file a motion to compel disclosure pursuant to the specific state FOI statutes and the remedies contained therein.

antlaw said:

What is the name of your state?florida
I have submitted a petition for writ of mandamus because i requested documents via FOIA, but have received no reply...
well...after filing...I was told that "Mandamus" is only for "incarcerated inmates"... but, this is NOT stated in the statute...however, there is a statement regading other remedies...so I am seeking input...am I mistaken, or can a Writ of Mandamus be used to comple compliance with FOIA request?
Thanx for the help...

Click to expand...

Of whom did you make this request?


after filing...I was told that "Mandamus" is only for "incarcerated inmates"

Who told you this?

seniorjudge said:

after filing...I was told that "Mandamus" is only for "incarcerated inmates"

Who told you this?

Click to expand...

another inmate???

ok...I was told this by the clerk...but I was unsure... I was told to file the issue as a Civil complaint, not a Mandamus...
As for what gov't agency?...the Bureau of Prisons...and the statutory time has long expired, and I made an amended request when it appeared there was a problem...but still no response...
As for the "another inmate" comment...FYI...Federal inmates DO NOT have access to the Internet...and I am following up on this myself, a FORMER federal inmate.
I made appeal to Regional office, and to the Central office in Washington.
I was not seeking any sanctions or monetary amounts, all I wanted was for the BOP to release the records, records that I am authorized under FOIA...aka not exempted records.
However...thanx for the good info...

antlaw said:

ok...I was told this by the clerk...but I was unsure... I was told to file the issue as a Civil complaint, not a Mandamus...
As for what gov't agency?...the Bureau of Prisons...and the statutory time has long expired, and I made an amended request when it appeared there was a problem...but still no response...
As for the "another inmate" comment...FYI...Federal inmates DO NOT have access to the Internet...and I am following up on this myself, a FORMER federal inmate.
I made appeal to Regional office, and to the Central office in Washington.
I was not seeking any sanctions or monetary amounts, all I wanted was for the BOP to release the records, records that I am authorized under FOIA...aka not exempted records.
However...thanx for the good info...

Click to expand...

Why does the BOP deny your request?

And educated guess would be because the request is far too encompanssing and any FOI request must be for specific, identifiable documents.

well...the reason the BOP is denying my request COULD be due to the CIVIL action I have pending now...
Briefly, I was placed in seg improperly, and I was denied medical treatment for my known medical condition. There was not any review hearings held, nor did the BOP staff follow established procedures for seg placement.
Also, one of the staff wrote that I was put in seg in retaliation for my efforts to seek release via the Courts...
But, alas, while incarcerated, they tampered with my mail, and got the document, so I am seeking another copy from the central inmate file, for myself, from the BOP...
A SPECIFIC set of documents, in a SPECIFIC location...pretty simple really, but they have not produced them in over 1 year now...
I tried to make my request as narrow as possible, but they just do not want me to get those documents...