National Freedom of Information Coalition
Protecting Your Right to Open Government

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Public records sealed in Best Buy assault case

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From ActionNewsJax.com: JACKSONVILLE, Fla — Circuit Court Judge Adrian Soud must decide whether to allow the release of what Jacksonville media argues should be public record and important to the coverage of a high-profile case. His decision could make United States history.

Soud sealed records of a police report regarding the alleged attack on a nine-year-old girl in a bathroom at the Southside Boulevard Best Buy last month. A portion of a report included part of an alleged confession from the defendant, James Tadros.

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Judge threatens imprisonment, suspension of LSU board of supervisors in presidential records case

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From The Times-Picayune: A district judge in Baton Rouge ordered the LSU Board of Supervisors on Monday to turn over records related to the university’s presidential search, or face consequences that could include stopping all further court proceedings, suspending the board of supervisors, or imprisonment.

Saying “the court is very loathe to take these measures,” Judge Janice Clark told LSU’s lawyer that she “strongly urges and encourages your clients to comply” with her orders and turn over the records immediately.

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Washington state appeals court voids $650K award to woman in public-records case

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From The News Tribune:  A state appeals court panel has ruled that now-retired Pierce County Judge Frederick Fleming was wrong to award $650,000 in damages and fees to an abuse victim who sued the Department of Social and Health Services to get investigative records.

In a decision released Tuesday, the Division II panel ruled some of the records sought by Amber Wright were not subject to the state's Public Records Act and that others were not improperly withheld by DSHS because Wright's request for them was too vague.

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Wisconsin bill changing access to court database opposed

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From San Francisco Chronicle: MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The latest attempt to restrict public access to a popular online court records database is once again attracting opposition from media groups, landlords, the state court system and even the parents of the bill's sponsor.

But Rep. Evan Goyke, a Democrat from Milwaukee who is a former public defender in Milwaukee County, said Monday he will not be deterred by the tough road ahead, even though both his father and mother work for opponents of the bill.

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No cheap details on contracts

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From LivingstonDaily.com: […]

The bulk of state contracts flow through the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget, which houses the state’s central procurement office and publishes all of its 1,200 contracts with outside vendors — some $32 billion worth — on its website. These agreements range from health insurance for state workers to office supplies.

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Mass. AG to host forums on Open Meeting Law

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From The Boston Globe: BOSTON (AP) — The state Attorney General’s Office will hold three educational forums on the Open Meeting Law throughout the state next month.

The forums are part of an effort by Attorney General Martha Coakley to help public boards understand and comply with the requirements of the law. State, local, regional and county public boards are required to comply with the law.

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Disclosure divide: TPD releases different versions of police reports

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From Tallahassee Democrat: The Tallahassee Police Department scrubbed police reports of information — some of which it might be required by law to release — before handing them over to a Tallahassee Democrat reporter, but didn’t heavily redact the same reports when giving them to others.

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Access to fraternities’ discipline records limited

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From USA Today: PHOENIX — On Nov. 18, 20 members of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity at Arizona State University confronted three members of a rival fraternity at a Tempe, Ariz., apartment complex. The fight ended with a Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity member in the emergency room with a concussion and broken jaw. Tau Kappa Epsilon is now on probation from the university as a result.

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