connecticut foia – National Freedom of Information Coalition

Connecticut: 60 years fighting for open government

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The Connecticut Council on Freedom of Information had reason to celebrate at its annual meeting this month. It is the 60th anniversary of the group’s founding by Connecticut journalists seeking to protect the public’s right to know, a right not always appreciated or understood by the public, or by some public servants at every level of government who prefer to perform many of their functions away from the prying eyes of the taxpayer.

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Newtown 911 tapes released after court fight

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Newtown school shooting 911 calls reveal a mixture of calm and anguish from the callers, and gunshots from the assailant are heard in the background, audio recordings released on Dec. 4 reveal.

Officials in Newtown, Connecticut, released recordings of 911 emergency phone calls from the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

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Connecticut task force to hold last public hearing on FOI vs. victim privacy on Oct. 16

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From CT News Junkie: A task force weighing the privacy rights of crime victims against open access to public records under the Freedom of Information Act will have its third and final public hearing Wednesday morning in the Legislative Office Building.

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Daniel Klau: Who misled the Sandy Hook families about crime scene photos and the Freedom of Information Act?

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From Appealing Brief: Only days before the end of the 2013 legislative session last June, someone (apparently a Fox News reporter) started a false rumor that documentary filmmaker Michael Moore was going to make a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) request for graphic crime scene photographs of the Sandy Hook massacre and then splash those photographs all over the Internet or movie screens. Michael Moore never made any such request and he never had any intention of making such a request. […]

Victim privacy panel to hold 2nd Conn. hearing

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From San Francisco Chronicle: BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — A state panel reviewing ways to balance victims’ privacy with Connecticut’s open records law is holding its second public hearing.

The Task Force on Victim Privacy and the Public’s Right to Know is scheduled to hear from members of the public Wednesday at Bridgeport City Hall. The hearing begins at 6 p.m.

Visit San Francisco Chronicle for more.

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Conn. FOI commission to consider recommendation to release 911 tapes from Sandy Hook shooting

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From The Republic: HARTFORD, Connecticut — Connecticut’s Freedom of Information Commission is meeting this week to consider whether recordings of 911 calls from the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting should be made public.

An attorney for the commission who heard a challenge from The Associated Press recommended earlier this month that the recordings be released.

Visit The Republic for more.

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NFOIC’s State FOIA Friday for June 7, 2013

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A few state FOIA and local open government news items selected from many of interest that we might or might not have drawn attention to earlier in the week. While you're at it, be sure to check out State FOIA Friday Archives.

Bulldog open records lawsuit continues

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Newtown officials ordered to provide 911 calls to public records panel for review

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From The Republic: HARTFORD, Connecticut — A state Freedom of Information commission on Monday ordered Newtown officials to provide it with 911 calls from the day of the shooting inside Sandy Hook Elementary School as it considers an appeal for their release by The Associated Press.

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Conn. bill would keep some Newtown records private

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From The Leaf Chronicle: HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A plan by Connecticut officials to withhold some Newtown school shooting records from the public would be another blow to government transparency, which has taken hits in other states in recent years, advocates for freedom of information laws say.

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Town clerk ignoring law over Newtown death certificates

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Editorial from Courant.com: Newtown town clerk Debbie Aurelia is not just disregarding state law and years of tradition in withholding death certificates regarding the Dec. 14 Newtown massacre. In this ultimate act of arrogance, she is declaring that she knows best — she is the law.

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