Thomas S. Leonhard v. John Mitchell, Attorney General of the United States

IRVING R. KAUFMAN, Circuit Judge.

This appeal from an order granting summary judgment against the plaintiff, Thomas Leonhard, in an action seeking a writ of mandamus, is set in a factual context so extraordinary as to require somewhat extended discussion.

In essence, Leonhard has asked a federal court to compel officials in the United States Department of Justice to tell him where he may find his children —Michael, age eleven; Karen, age ten; and Stephan, age eight — whose current location and identity are known only to a handful of people. These are Rochelle Calabrese (whom we refer to, for…