Newspaper sues community college district for public records

The Contra Costa times is suing the Peralta Community College District under the California Public Records Act for records relating to a lucrative no-bid contract awarded to a developer, an associate of the district chancellor. The newspaper is also seeking records of employees punished for allegedly releasing information about the chancellor’s ties to the developer. -DB

East Bay Express
October 20, 2009
By Robert Gammon

The Contra Costa Times and the Oakland Tribune have filed suit against the Peralta Community College District in an effort to force the agency to release public records.

The CC Times, which published a series of hard-hitting stories about Peralta Chancellor Elihu Harris this summer, wants to see a report by Peralta’s inspector general on Harris’ ties to developer Mark Lindquist. The Times previously reported that Harris steered a lucrative no-bid contract to Lindquist without disclosing their business dealings.

The CC Times also wants to view disciplinary records of employees who were punished after the newspaper printed its stories earlier this year. The Times already reported that Peralta officials had tried to fire an employee because they believed she was a source for the newspaper’s reports. Peralta officials claim that the documents sought by the CC Times are either private personnel records or are protected by attorney-client privilege.

Copyright  2009 East Bay Express