Opinion
CRIMINAL ACTION 11-82-139
November 20, 2003
Order on Copies
Jimmy Nixon, Sr., requests a copy of motions and the opinion in this case. His request is denied.
His request fails for three reasons. First, the Freedom of Information Act does not apply because the court is not an "agency" as defined by the statute. 5 U.S.C. § 552(f).
Second, the opinion is already available in the Federal Supplement and on the Internet at various sites as well as the court's own website at http://www.txs.uscourts.gov.
Third, the pleadings, motions, and responses are already public and available from the clerk's office. Because the pleadings are intensely fact-specific and will not shed light on another person's conviction, copies of them are not free. Information about the law that shaped the court's decision is in the opinion and other readily available sources. If he wants copies of the pleadings, he must pay the fee to get them.