NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Government watchdog groups say changes to the state's public records law currently being debated in Baton Rouge could hamper investigations that in the past led to major reforms to the NOPD and public corruption convictions. It states that there is.
The governor has said changes are needed because the current law has been weaponized, but others say the proposed changes would be a major setback for good government.
Joel Friedman is a retired Tulane Law professor who specializes in the U.S. Constitution and has worked with Fox 8 on several investigations.
“If passed, this would be the most severe restriction on public access to public records anywhere in the United States,” Friedman said.
Access to public records has been helpful to the media and many citizen watchdogs like Skip Gallagher, who filed hundreds of public records requests that led to numerous changes.
“I don't understand why they would do this. It's like they're trying to hide something,” Gallagher said.
Gallagher says his public records request revealed 96,000 backlogged DNA samples at the NOPD, numerous allegations of police payroll fraud, and safety issues with the new RTA ferry. .
“The only way we can check is by giving people access to these public records,” Gallagher said.
Gov. Jeff Landry said public records laws have been used as a weapon to intimidate public officials. He claims he and his allies are trying to block this under a bill currently before the Senate.
“The final product is fine, but everything before that is a work in progress,” said state Sen. Health Cloud (R-Turkey Creek).
Legal experts say the proposed policy change is hypocritical after Congress recently voted to make certain juvenile criminal records public.
“You can't have it both ways. I can't say I want you to hear about this, but I don't want you to hear about anything else. This is vaccination through public surveillance,” Friedman said. .
Terry King, who works with Concerned Citizens of St. Tammany, said public records requests helped convict former Coroner Peter Galvan and former Coroner Walter Reed.
Their misconduct was exposed in a series of Lee Zurich investigations.
“Over the years, since 2009, I have sent hundreds of public letters requesting information about corrupt government officials,” Dr. King said.
King and others now fear that government corruption will run unchecked without public oversight.
“The First Amendment gives me the right to petition the government for redress of grievances. If I don't know what the government is doing, how can I know what they're doing? '' said Friedman.
Scott Sternberg, a free speech lawyer who has worked for FOX8 and other media outlets, said the government needs to know what it's doing to keep the public informed. He argues that the proposed legislation is a threat to the democratic order of society.
Was there a spelling or grammatical error in your story? click here to report it. Please also include a heading.
Subscribe to Fox 8 YouTube channel.
Copyright 2024 WVUE. All rights reserved.
