As I’m sure you can tell, I’m a fan of the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA. I know…it can seem tedious and very, very slow at times. But because of FOIA, we’ve learned a number of helpful things about Ronald Tammen’s case, the biggest among them being that his fingerprints were expunged 30 years before their retention period had ended because of either a court order or a conflict with the Privacy Act. That. Was. Huge.
What’s more, we learned through a public records request to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office that the state of Ohio has no record of a court order regarding Ron’s expunged fingerprints in 2002 or any other year for that matter. Since Ohio is the state from which Ron’s missing person case had originated, it’s the only state that could issue the court order to expunge his prints. Therefore, thanks to FOIA and Ohio’s Public Records Law, we can conclude that Ronald Tammen was alive in 2002 when he made the request to have his fingerprints expunged due to a conflict with the Privacy Act.
Still, some questions remain, not the least of which are: where did Ron Tammen go on April 19, 1953; where was he between 1953 and 2002; and, well, where is he now?
Here are some current FOIA requests that I’m waiting on that may help us resolve some of these questions:
CIA
| Seeking | Date submitted | Request or appeal | Latest update |
|---|---|---|---|
| Declassification of four MKULTRA documents: 146201; 149546; 148193; 149547 | August 19, 2021 | Request | Per 11-3-2023 letter: Estimated completion date: 9 June 2025 🙄 |
| Declassification of names on document 144665 | May 12, 2019 (Original request August 30, 2016) | Appeal |
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Department of Justice
| Seeking | Date submitted | Request or appeal | Latest update |
|---|---|---|---|
| All notifications received January 1-December 31, 1955 from U.S. Attorneys in which draft evasion charges were dismissed. | February 25, 2022 | Request | DOJ’s status update from Oct. 6, 2023 |
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U.S. Air Force
| Seeking | Date submitted | Request or appeal | Latest update |
|---|---|---|---|
| Records of A.P. Gagge for 9-1-52 thru 1-31-53 | August 1, 2023 | Request | |
| Records for the Surgeon General’s Office from 9-1-52 thru 1-31-53 | August 1, 2023 | Request | |
| Flight records for all flights departing Wright Patterson AFB for period of 4-19-53 thru 4-26-53 | August 12, 2023 | Request | |
| Customer records produced by the Armed Services Technical Information Agency (ASTIA), Dayton, from 3-25-52 thru 12-31-52 | August 12, 2023 | Request | |
| All investigative records for individuals who were accused under AFR 35-66 (homosexuality) at Lackland Air Force Base, 1952-56 | September 23, 2023 | Request | |
| All records pertaining to the USAF’s investigation of Jimmy N. Shaver for the rape and murder of Chere Jo Horton. | September 23, 2023 | Request |
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National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
| Seeking | Date submitted | Request or appeal | Latest update |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classification 79 (Missing Persons), FBI Headquarters Case Files from 2-10-47 thru 10-9-80 | June 6, 2022 | Request | |
| FBI’s background check on Reuben Buck Robertson, Jr., before he was named deputy secretary of defense | April 27, 2023 | Request | |
| Reuben Buck Robertson, Jr.’s military records from NARA’s National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis, MO | September 26, 2023 | Request | 1 of 2 2 of 2 |
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U.S. Army
| Seeking | Date submitted | Request or appeal | Latest update |
|---|---|---|---|
| A copy of “History of the Control Division, ASF, 1942-1945” by Richard M. Leighton. (ASF stands for Army Service Forces) | September 27, 2023 | Request |
Be assured that other things are going on behind the scenes, but this is good for starters. If you’re wondering why I’m asking for these items, please feel free to ask in the comments.