crime records Archives - Page 14 of 19 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

27 Feb, 2015

Reporters Committee, others file amicus brief in Tennessee police records case

By Deborah Fisher|2015-02-27T15:04:33-06:00February 27, 2015|Categories: crime records|Tags: Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Robb Harvey, Tennessee Supreme Court, The Tennessean, Vanderbilt rape case|0 Comments

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters, the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression and the University of Virginia School of Law First Amendment Clinic have file an amicus brief with the Tennessee Supreme Court, arguing that a lower court's ruling went too far in saying law enforcement had the right to keep from public view a broad swath of police records. The case, The Tennessean et al. v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, started after the newspaper requested to see certain police records about a reported sexual assault in a Vanderbilt University dorm room. A trial court ruled that [...]

12 Feb, 2015

TBI files can be secret even when entered as evidence, Criminal Appeals Court says

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-09T08:21:53-06:00February 12, 2015|Categories: court records, crime records|Tags: Court of Criminal Appeals, court records, Herbert Moncier, Judge Timothy Easter, Knoxville News Sentinel, sealed court records, TBI|0 Comments

Last week, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that Tennessee Bureau of Investigation files could remain confidential even when they are entered as evidence in a court trial. The case in which this came up involved the heinous murder of Channon Christian, 21, and Christopher Newsom, 23, who were kidnapped, raped and tortured in Knoxville in 2007. The guilty verdicts in the trial were put in question when the presiding judge, Richard Baumgartner, became subject to a TBI probe related to buying prescription drug painkillers from two felons. Defense attorneys sought new trials, and parts of the TBI investigation were entered into the judicial proceeding. The parents of the victims intervened, [...]

19 Jan, 2015

Tennessee Supreme Court agrees to hear public records case involving police files

By Deborah Fisher|2015-01-19T10:30:15-06:00January 19, 2015|Categories: crime records, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: crime records, Lauren Sturm, Nashville, Robb Harvey, Tennessee Supreme Court, The Tennessean, Vanderbilt rape case|0 Comments

The Tennessee Supreme Court has granted the application of The Tennessean and other media organizations to appeal a Court of Appeals decision regarding what police records are exempt from the Tennessee Public Records Act. In a Sept. 30 ruling, the Court of Appeals said that Criminal Court Rule 16(a)(2) acts as an exemption to allow police to withhold records relevant to an ongoing investigation. The opinion was written by Judge Richard Dinkins and joined by Judge Frank G. Clement Jr. and reversed a trial court ruling that police must release some records. A dissent was written by Judge Neal McBrayer, who said that the criminal court rule exempted some records, [...]

1 Dec, 2014

Request to appeal Vanderbilt records case aims to settle what police can withhold from public

By Deborah Fisher|2014-12-01T10:00:12-06:00December 1, 2014|Categories: crime records, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: Judge Neal McBrayer, Judge Richard Dinkins, litigation, Maria De Varenne, Robb Harvey, TCOG news, Vanderbilt rape case|0 Comments

The Tennessean, seven other media outlets, the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters and Tennessee Coalition for Open Government have filed a request with the Tennessee Supreme Court to appeal a lower court's ruling concerning what police can withhold from public view. The Court of Appeals in Nashville in a Sept. 30 ruling said that if a local law enforcement agency claims information is relevant to an ongoing criminal investigation, that information can be exempt from the Tennessee Public Records Act. Appellate Judge Neal McBrayer dissented, saying the specific police information requested in The Tennessean's case did not fall under a previously recognized exemption that protects some, but not all, information in a [...]

6 Oct, 2014

Dinkins opinion in public records case expands police secrecy powers
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Dinkins opinion in public records case expands police secrecy powers

crime records, public records lawsuits Tennessee

Dinkins opinion in public records case expands police secrecy powers

By Deborah Fisher|2014-10-07T12:07:44-05:00October 6, 2014|Categories: crime records, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: crime records, Judge Neal McBrayer, Judge Richard Dinkins, police secrecy, The Tennessean|1 Comment

The Court of Appeals in Nashville last week kicked the can farther down the wrong road when it expanded police powers so they could keep just about anything and everything they want secret from citizens. Judge Richard Dinkins of the Court of Appeals, Nashville Specifically, Judge Richard Dinkins said that if your local police or sheriff’s department claims information is relevant to an ongoing investigation, they should be able to keep that information confidential. As police have concluded across the state when refusing to release basic documents about crime, “under investigation” covers almost everything they do. It’s not a harmless power to hand over. News media has been [...]