Public Records Archives - Page 5 of 74 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

26 Apr, 2023

Is school shooter Audrey Hale’s ‘manifesto’ an open record under the Tennessee Public Records Act?
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Is school shooter Audrey Hale’s ‘manifesto’ an open record under the Tennessee Public Records Act?

crime records

Is school shooter Audrey Hale’s ‘manifesto’ an open record under the Tennessee Public Records Act?

By Deborah Fisher|2023-04-26T16:40:22-05:00April 26, 2023|Categories: crime records|Tags: Audrey Hale, investigative exemption, State Sen. Todd Gardenhire, The Covenant School|3 Comments

School shooter Audrey Hale's manifesto would not fall under the so-called "investigative exemption" to Tennessee's public records law because this exemption is only available when there is an investigation into possible criminal charges. Here, the shooter is dead. Police have said she acted alone. So if there are no other suspects to charge, there is no investigation that could lead to criminal charges against someone.

1 Feb, 2023

Friends of Lick Creek file public records lawsuit over sewage effluent plans
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Friends of Lick Creek file public records lawsuit over sewage effluent plans

environmental records, public records lawsuits Tennessee

Friends of Lick Creek file public records lawsuit over sewage effluent plans

By Deborah Fisher|2023-02-01T10:53:30-06:00February 1, 2023|Categories: environmental records, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: Conley v. Knox County Sheriff, Friends of Lick Creek, Hickman County, Lick Creek, responsive records, sewage treatment plant, Water Authority of Dickson County|0 Comments

A group of residents in Hickman County are suing the Water Authority of Dickson County for not turning over documents about a proposed sewage plant that would dump 12 million gallons of wastewater a day into Lick Creek. The residents allege that the water authority withheld documents without explanation. About 97% of the sewage would come from Davidson and Williamson counties.

30 Jan, 2023

Citizens deserve access to police video even when people don’t die
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Citizens deserve access to police video even when people don’t die

crime records, Legislature

Citizens deserve access to police video even when people don’t die

By Deborah Fisher|2023-01-30T18:09:54-06:00January 30, 2023|Categories: crime records, Legislature|Tags: body cameras, crime records, fees for public records, police body cameras, redactions, Tyre Nichols, use of force|0 Comments

If the video footage from the Tyre Nichols beating in Memphis tells us anything, it’s that we need to keep protecting the tools that allow public accountability for corruption.

5 Jan, 2023

Judge puts the brakes on state’s use of deliberative process privilege
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Judge puts the brakes on state’s use of deliberative process privilege

deliberative process privilege, public records lawsuits Tennessee

Judge puts the brakes on state’s use of deliberative process privilege

By Deborah Fisher|2023-01-05T14:50:58-06:00January 5, 2023|Categories: deliberative process privilege, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: Chancellor Patricia Moskal, consultant's report, deliberative process privilege, Deputy Attorney General Janet Kleinfelter, Paul McAdoo, Stephen Elliott|0 Comments

Davidson County Chancellor Pat Moskal ruled that the state could not withhold consultant reports by McKinsey and Co. under a deliberative process privilege in the face of a public records request. She said the reports were a one-way communication with state officials and did not fall under a deliberative process privilege because they were not "deliberative" and did not consist of communications between high-level government officials. The ruling is a win for journalist Stephen Elliott, who began requesting the reports in 2020.

30 Dec, 2022

State should address secretive culture around lethal injection drugs
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State should address secretive culture around lethal injection drugs

execution drugs

State should address secretive culture around lethal injection drugs

By Deborah Fisher|2023-01-02T16:31:45-06:00December 30, 2022|Categories: execution drugs|Tags: execution, execution drugs, Gov. Bill Lee, lethal injection, public records exemptions, Tony Parker|0 Comments

An independent investigation of the state's secret handling of lethal injection drugs shows it did not follow state protocols for testing the materials. The state should fix this and address the secrecy about lethal injection drugs going forward.