It has been roughly 1,900 exhausting days since John Coleman, a researcher and author, filed his Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) request with the Drug Enforcement Agency (“DEA”). Under FOIA, departments have twenty days to respond to requests, plus a ten day extension for cause.
Coleman is still waiting. And after 1,900 or so days, he may still have to pay for the photocopies.
Coleman filed his initial request in February 2008, seeking information concerning the government’s regulation of the drug carisoprodol (a muscle relaxant also known as Soma). Carisoprodol became a Schedule IV controlled substance in 2011.






