Booking photographs are a distinct category of records that individuals have requested from the U.S. Marshals Service under the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”). While FOIA provides for broad disclosure of agency documents, 5 U.S.C. § 522(b)(7)(C) (“exemption 7(C)” or “7(C)”) protects personal information from being disclosed under FOIA when there is a privacy interest in nondisclosure of law enforcement records, and if a corresponding public interest exists, when the privacy interest in nondisclosure of the photograph prevails over the public interest. In recent years, there has been a surge of “mugshot websites,” which exploit such records by publishing them online and requiring individuals to pay money to have the photographs removed. This occurrence, coupled with the extensive availability of public records online, has led to more strict protection of U.S. Marshals Service booking photographs, as well as some state legislation prohibiting the use of booking photographs for exploitive mugshot websites. Despite the strong privacy interest in protecting individuals from humiliation, in some circumstances there is an equally strong public interest that fits within the meaning and purpose of FOIA. A limited number of federal courts have considered this issue, resulting in a split among the circuits. In 2015, the Sixth Circuit affirmed the precedent set forth in Detroit Free Press I , providing that booking photographs are not exempt from disclosure, but also urging the court to rehear the case en banc. This request was met, and now, the Sixth Circuit will rehear Detroit Free Press II , ultimately deciding whether or not to overrule its precedent that booking photographs are not exempt under 7(C) of FOIA. Due to the significant public interest at stake, courts must not take a categorical approach to whether or not these documents are available; in some circumstances, these records contain useful evidence regarding the interworking of a federal agency. Additionally, states and the federal government can enact legislation prohibiting exploitive websites from publishing booking photographs and making money from their removal. Since these records could be crucial in evaluating agency conduct, courts must preserve the ability for booking photographs to be available under FOIA, even if only in very limited circumstances, instead of completely excluding such documents from disclosure. These documents must not be categorically exempt from disclosure under FOIA in order to protect individual privacy and still retain possible access to booking photographs when warranted. A more reasonable approach would provide for ad hoc balancing in circumstances when a significant public interest exists in the disclosure of such records.

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面部照片还是公共利益？为什么 FOIA 豁免 7(C) 不明确免除预订照片的披露

预订照片是个人根据《信息自由法》(“FOIA”) 向美国法警局请求的一类独特的记录。虽然 FOIA 规定广泛披露机构文件，但 5 USC § 522(b)(7)(C)（“豁免 7(C)”或“7(C)”）保护个人信息在 FOIA 规定的情况下不被披露不公开执法记录的隐私利益，如果存在相应的公共利益，当不公开照片的隐私利益高于公共利益时。近年来，出现了大量“面部照片网站”，它们通过在线发布这些记录并要求个人付费才能删除照片来利用这些记录。这一事件，加上在线公共记录的广泛可用性，导致对美国法警服务预订照片的更严格保护，以及一些州立法禁止将预订照片用于剥削性的面部照片网站。尽管保护个人免受羞辱具有强烈的隐私利益，但在某些情况下，同样强烈的公共利益也符合《信息自由法》的含义和目的。有限数量的联邦法院已经考虑过这个问题，导致各巡回法院之间出现分歧。2015 年，第六巡回法院确认了底特律自由新闻 I 中的先例，规定预订照片不免于披露，但也敦促法院全体复审此案。这个要求得到了满足，现在，第六巡回赛将排练底特律自由新闻II，最终决定是否推翻其根据《信息自由法》第 7(C) 条不豁免预订照片的先例。由于涉及重大公共利益，法院不得对这些文件是否可用采取分类方法；在某些情况下，这些记录包含有关联邦机构互通的有用证据。此外，各州和联邦政府可以制定立法，禁止剥削性网站发布预订照片并通过移除照片获利。由于这些记录对于评估机构行为至关重要，因此法院必须保留根据 FOIA 预订照片的能力，即使仅在非常有限的情况下，而不是完全排除此类文件的披露。为了保护个人隐私并在必要时仍保留对预订照片的可能访问权限，这些文件不得根据 FOIA 明确免于披露。在披露此类记录存在重大公共利益的情况下，更合理的方法将提供临时平衡。