Dinler v. City of New York

After learning that the 2004 Republican National Convention (RNC) would be held in New York City, the New York police department (NYPD) (defendant) began developing plans to maintain safety and order during the event. Even small protests by extreme groups at the RNC could lead to large-scale protests and violence, and New York City was a known terrorist target. The NYPD’s intelligence division researched potential extremist groups and their plans for disrupting the RNC and compiled the research results into 600 pages of “end user reports.” Some members of the intelligence division went undercover, infiltrated the groups, and prepared “field reports” memorializing meetings and discussions with group members. The contents of the field reports did not contradict or undermine the end-user reports, and the field reports contained detailed information about the NYPD’s undercover techniques and procedures. The NYPD adopted a plan to arrest and fingerprint disorderly protestors at the RNC. A group of individuals, including Hacer Dinler (collectively, Dinler) (plaintiffs) were arrested, detained, and fingerprinted after participating in demonstrations at the RNC. Dinler sued the City of New York (defendant), claiming civil-rights violations. During discovery, the city produced the end-user reports but refused to produce the field reports based on the law-enforcement privilege. Dinler moved to compel production, which the district court granted. The court believed that the field reports were privileged but could be produced in redacted form to Dinler’s attorneys. The city filed a petition for writ of mandamus, seeking to overturn the court’s order.