Feds ask Flint judge to dismiss Insane Clown Posse Juggalo gang lawsuit

Here is a little update on the ICP vs FBI lawsuit stemming from Juggalos being labeled as a gang. The FBI has asked a judge to dismiss the Insane Clown Posse's Juggalo gang lawsuit. They stated in their motion to dismiss that they have turned over all pertinent records in two separate releases. A trial in the case was not expected to begin until May 2014. No date is scheduled for a hearing on the FBI's summary judgment motion. You can read the full article regarding this below. From MLive.com:

FLINT, MI -- The Federal Bureau of Investigation is asking a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed over its labeling the fans of the band the Insane Clown Posse as gang members. The FBI filed a motion for summary disposition Friday, Aug. 23, after the Insane Clown Posse and its Bloomfield Hills-based law firm, Hertz Schram, filed a lawsuit in September 2012 in Flint U.S. District Court demanding the FBI turn over information that led the agency to list the band's fans -- known as Juggalos -- as a gang. The lawsuit claims the band asked the FBI through an Aug. 24 Freedom of Information Act request filed by an attorney from Hertz Schram for information regarding the investigation that led to the Juggalos being listed as a gang in the National Gang Intelligence Center's 2011 National Gang Threat Assessment Emerging Trends report. However, the FBI argues in its motion to dismiss, which was filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office, that the bureau turned over all pertinent records in two separate releases. FBI spokesperson Simon Shaykhet declined to comment on the motion. The FBI claims that it reviewed 63 pages of records and released 62 of them on Dec. 6, 2012, and reviewed 93 more pages of records before releasing 40 pages of them on Jan. 30. Attorney Howard Hertz from Hertz Schram and ICP members could not be reached for comment. No response has been filed in response to the motion. The band's request specifically sought information related to certain passages of the 2011 report that referred to the Juggalos as a "loosely-organized hybrid gang" and that they "exhibit gang-like behavior and engage in criminal activity and violence." The documents released by the FBI contained numerous media reports of Juggalo-related violence and heavily redacted communications between the FBI and local law enforcement authorities. Intra-agency communications, names of law enforcement personnel and documents that included potentially confidential law enforcement information were either redacted or not included in the releases, according to court records. The Oakland County-based band has defended its followers since its inclusion in the 2011 report. "We are not a gang! We are a family!" an expletive-laden statement released by the band following the filing of the lawsuit said. "We come together for our luv of the Insane Clown Posse, Psychopathic Records, and our Juggalo pride." A trial in the case was not expected to begin until May 2014. No date is scheduled for a hearing on the FBI's summary judgment motion.