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11 Jan, 2025

Tussle over secrecy of lethal injection protocol shakes loose some records

By |2025-01-11T10:01:35-06:00January 11, 2025|Categories: execution drugs|0 Comments

The Tennessee Department of Correction tried to keep its new execution protocol for lethal injection secret. But after a week of wide news reporting of the state's refusal to release the document, it changed its mind and provided the document with redactions. The tussle shows how secrecy about lethal injection as a method of execution continues to be a problem.

22 Nov, 2024

Tennessee Supreme Court to hear case on sealed court records

By |2024-11-22T11:08:52-06:00November 22, 2024|Categories: court records, First Amendment, public records lawsuits Tennessee, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

The Tennessee Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case in which a lower court judge refused to unseal court records in a test of the First Amendment right of access by the public to court proceedings and court documents.

30 Oct, 2024

TVA fights public records lawsuit over its grants to cryptocurrency mines

By |2024-10-30T12:25:51-05:00October 30, 2024|Categories: Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

The Tennessee Valley Authority has refused to release documents about its grants to cryptocurrency companies, including one in Knoxville, and is now fighting a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit from a journalist and UT professor over it. TVA claims that releasing how much it gave the company in economic incentives would reveal its own trade secrets and violate the privacy rights of the employees in the companies that received the grants.

11 Sep, 2024

Tennessee is getting away with delaying access to public records, sometimes for years

By |2024-09-11T14:16:43-05:00September 11, 2024|Categories: public records lawsuits Tennessee, requests|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments

Late last year, the city of Memphis wrote a $7,419.68 check to reimburse the attorney fees of journalist Marc Perrusquia rather than risk losing a public records lawsuit. The city folded before the case got before a judge. Something similar happened this summer in Knoxville when University of Tennessee threw in the towel on the eve of a public hearing in a public records case after stalling for more than a year and half. Tennessee ranked 45th in complying with public records requests, according to one study. We need fewer delays and better compliance with the law.

22 Jul, 2024

Judge cleared release for many Covenant shooting police records despite copyright ruling on manifesto

By |2024-07-24T06:32:25-05:00July 22, 2024|Categories: crime records, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: , , , , , , , |1 Comment

Much attention has been given to a ruling by Chancellor I'Ashea Myles blocking release of the Covenant School shooter's manifesto and other writings. But a closer look at the ruling shows that she has cleared the way for release of other records in the case as soon as police officially finish their investigation. In March, police said the investigation would be over in June. In mid-June, they said it would be over in July. So is a release of records imminent?

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