Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Virginia

Freedom of Information Act

I am a minister who served a conflicted church. I resigned the position. The Executive who heads my denomination's geographic area is trying to push me out of the ministry inspite of my good record (even in the conflicted church). He required me to be tested by a career and counseling center. I did this. The results were positive, and I when I left I had all of the raw data except the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. The director of the center would not give those results to me; however, she sent a written evaluation to the Executive based on it rather than the raw data which we went over and which was given to me. This document is going to determine whether I can go back into ministry. Under the Freedom of Information of Act, do I have a right to demand the results of this test? By the way, this Executive does a lot business with this center and is good friends with the director. I am beginning to feel as though I have been ''set up.'' Please advise.


Asked on 10/13/04, 10:58 pm

3 Answers from Attorneys
Michael Stone Law Offices of Michael B. Stone Toll Free 1-855-USE-MIKE

Re: Freedom of Information Act

The FOIA only applies to government entities. Unless the center which administered the MMPI is a government agency, which is doubtful, you would be unable to use FOIA to obtain either the raw test date or the "results" of your MMPI. I would not that, usually the MMPI responses are fed into a computer and a computer printout is returned to the person or entity that administered the MMPI. The computer printout is extremely vague and can be used to prove or disprove anything a shrink / cihld custody evaluator / expert witness wants to prove or disprove, or as Shakespeare said, "The Devil can quote Scripture for his purpose." If you were to become involved in a lawsuit, you might have the right to subpoena this information. However, any lawsuit you might bring against a religious organization would be limited by First Amendment concerns, in many cases courts are reluctant to second-guess the decisionmaking processes of religious entities.

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Answered on 10/15/04, 1:55 am
Michael Stone Law Offices of Michael B. Stone Toll Free 1-855-USE-MIKE

Re: Freedom of Information Act

The FOIA only applies to government entities. Unless the center which administered the MMPI is a government agency, which is doubtful, you would be unable to use FOIA to obtain either the raw test date or the "results" of your MMPI. I would note that, usually the MMPI responses are fed into a computer and a computer printout is returned to the person or entity that administered the MMPI. The computer printout is extremely vague and can be used to prove or disprove anything a shrink / cihld custody evaluator / expert witness wants to prove or disprove, or as Shakespeare said, "The Devil can quote Scripture for his purpose." If you were to become involved in a lawsuit, you might have the right to subpoena this information. However, any lawsuit you might bring against a religious organization would be limited by First Amendment concerns, in many cases courts are reluctant to second-guess the decisionmaking processes of religious entities.

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Answered on 10/15/04, 1:56 am
Dr. Michael A. S. Guth Tennessee Attorney at Law Assists Pro Se (without a lawyer) Parties

Re: Freedom of Information Act

The U. S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) applies to both federal and state government agencies. You did not mention whether the Minnesota testing center was a part of the state government.

To learn more about how FOIA works in a court of law, I recommend you read my award-winning brief on FOIA. It can be found on the Internet at http://riskmgmt.biz/foiabrief.htm

Dr. Michael Guth

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Answered on 10/14/04, 6:43 am


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