Federal Judge Orders National Park Service to Produce Docs to Personal Injury Plaintiff

Image via WikipediaIn Tim Wild v. National Park Service("NPS") (Case No. 1:10-cv-00072-JAW), U.S. District Court for the District of Maine Judge John Woodcock has ordered the federal agency to produce records sought by a personal injury plaintiff in a Freedom of Information Act [5 U.S.C. sec. 552 et seq.] request.

As reported by the Associated Press and Bangor Daily News, the plaintiff, who sustained facial injuries in a 2008 melee involving park rangers and about 40 young people who had gathered on Day Mountain at Acadia National Park, sought documents from the federal agency regarding the incident. Judge Woodcock ordered the NPS to pay Wild's $24,000 legal bill incurred in his pursuit of the records.

In his 41-page decision, Judge Woodcock ordered the NPS to produce its investigatory activity reports and transcripts of  lay witness testimony to Wild, but redacted to remove personal identifiers.  Previously, the NPS paid Wild $45,000 to resolve a separate lawsuit alleging park rangers had violated his civil rights.