United States Court of Appeals FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT Argued September 20, 2021 Decided December 21, 2021 No. 20-5202 MOHAMMED JIBRIL, INDIVIDUALLY, AND ON BEHALF OF THEIR MINOR CHILDREN Y.J., AND O.J., ET AL., APPELLANTS v. ALEJANDRO N. MAYORKAS, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, ET AL., APPELLEES Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (No. 1:19-cv-02457) Christina A. Jump argued the cause for appellants. With her on the briefs was Charles D. Swift. Joshua Waldman, Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, argued the cause for appellees. With him on the brief were Brian M. Boynton, Acting Assistant Attorney General, and Sharon Swingle, Attorney. Before: HENDERSON and WALKER, Circuit Judges, and EDWARDS, Senior Circuit Judge. 2 Opinion for the Court filed by Senior Circuit Judge EDWARDS. EDWARDS, Senior Circuit Judge: In 2018, during extended airline trips, the members of the Jibril family (“Jibrils” or “Appellants”), a family of U.S. citizens, were forced to endure extensive and intrusive security screenings at domestic and international airports. As a result of these encounters with Government agents, the Jibrils believed that they were on a terrorist watchlist maintained by the U.S. Government. They initially invoked an administrative redress process to challenge their alleged inclusion on the watchlist. However, Government officials refused to disclose the family’s watchlist status. Finding the Government’s response inadequate to safeguard them from similar treatment in the future, the Jibrils filed suit in the District Court against the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and various other federal Government officials (collectively, “Government”). Their complaint alleges violations of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments and the Administrative Procedure Act, and it seeks declaratory and injunctive relief. The Government filed a motion to dismiss, which the District Court granted, with prejudice, on the ground that Appellants lacked Article III standing. Jibril v. Wolf, No. 19-cv-2457, slip op. at 6-10 (D.D.C. May 9, 2020), reprinted in Joint Appendix (“J.A.”) 161-65. The Jibrils now appeal. Before this court, the Government contends that the judgment of the District Court should be affirmed because the Jibrils’ complaint fails to adequately allege any imminent threat of future injury. We disagree. The Jibrils have plausibly alleged that they have future travel plans. We easily infer from the family’s travel history that they will soon fly again, particularly if they secure the relief they now seek. 3 Furthermore, the Jibrils’ uncontested factual allegations, combined with the reasonable inferences we draw from them, plausibly indicate that the family likely appeared on a terrorist watchlist in 2018. The Jibrils also plausibly allege that the treatment they endured went well beyond what typical travelers reasonably expect during airport screenings. Finally, the Jibrils’ factual allegations lead to the reasonable inference that the family’s watchlist status remains the same today. Any information to the contrary is within the Government’s exclusive control, and we must draw all reasonable inferences in the Jibrils’ favor at this stage of the litigation. Because the Jibrils plausibly allege …
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