Lora v. Dist. of Columbia Metropolitan Police Dep't

The D.C. Court of Appeals reversed rulings by the D.C. Superior Court in a Freedom of Information Act case in which the plaintiff, who is incarcerated, sought documents that he believed would help him in a collateral challenge of his 1999 drug convictions. The trial court granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment and denied the plaintiff's subsequent motions brought under Super. Ct. Civ. R. 60(b) and 59(e). The appeals court reversed the trial court's denial of both motions, finding that it erred in denying the Rule 60(b)(4) motion without at least a hearing and abused its discretion in denying the Rule 59(e) motion.

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Submitted March 13, 2008

Before FARRELL and THOMPSON, Associate Judges, and BELSON, Senior Judge.

Appellant Wilfredo Lora filed an action in the District of Columbia Superior Court under the District of Columbia Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”)*fn1 against former Chief Charles Ramsey of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).*fn2 Lora, who is incarcerated, sought documents that he believed would help him in a collateral challenge of his 1999 conviction, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, for conspiracy to distribute cocaine and heroin. After the trial court granted the District’s motion for summary judgment, Lora moved for relief from that judgment pursuant to Super. Ct. Civ. R. 60 (b). Upon the court’s denial of his Rule 60 (b) motion, Lora moved to amend that ruling pursuant to Super. Ct. Civ. R. 59 (e). The court denied that motion as well. In this appeal, Lora contends that the trial court erred in denying his Rule 60 (b) and 59 (e) motions. He also asserts that he was not served with the District’s motion for summary judgment, that the trial court failed to give him timely notice of its entry of summary judgment, and that there exists a material factual dispute that made summary judgment for the District improper. We reverse and remand.

Lora v. Dist. of Columbia Metropolitan Police Dep't

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