On April 23, 2024, Elizabeth Wilson, a student journalist at Mustang News, the student paper at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly), sued the university for violating the California Public Records Act by refusing to disclose public records she requested more than 18 months ago. Wilson made the requests while researching stories on campus sexual assault, labor violations alleged by Cal Poly student employees, and a top administrator’s failure to respond to sexual harassment and other complaints.
Wilson filed the three requests in September and October 2022; in all three cases, she received responses from Cal Poly that they would search for records. After months passed and she received no records or communication detailing why the records she requested would not be released, she followed up on all three requests in January 2023.
In response, Cal Poly refused to provide an estimated date to produce the records, which is required by the California Public Records Act, and merely “assured” Wilson that it was processing all her requests. More months passed with no update, despite Wilson asking again and reminding Cal Poly of its obligation to provide an estimated date.
On June 16, 2023, FAC sent a letter on Wilson’s behalf identifying the numerous California Public Records Act violations Cal Poly has committed regarding her public records requests. A month later, Cal Poly did respond that Wilson should begin receiving responsive records “as they become available” and will be “apprised of our progress on a bi-weekly basis.” The university also said it identified only “approximately 50 e-mails” responsive to one of her requests, and that in August 2023, it “finished reviewing” those records and they only needed to “be review by University Counsel,” which they said would take “a few more weeks.”
Despite its promises, Cal Poly stopped updating Wilson in September 2023, and Wilson never received any records in response to these three requests before filing the lawsuit.
With the pressure of FAC’s lawsuit, Cal Poly began disclosing records to Wilson within a month and provided a full disclosure of all nonexempt records by July 2024. Despite Cal Poly’s earlier claims that Wilson’s requests were too voluminous to process promptly, the ultimate production for all three requests consisted only of approximately 250 emails, with only 21 responsive emails withheld as exempt.
On October 30, 2024, after Wilson received the records, FAC and Wilson settled the case against Cal Poly. The settlement agreement ensures that public records staff at Cal Poly will receive training on their legal obligations under the Public Records Act, and the training will be recorded and posted online so that the public can review it for accuracy or cite it if staff is noncompliant.
The settlement also gives Mustang News reporters the opportunity to meet with Cal Poly’s records staff in person, every academic term over the next three years, to discuss the status of their open requests, the criteria and process staff uses to queue requests for processing, and suggestions for overcoming any practical basis for delaying or denying access to records.
The case, Wilson v. California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, was filed in Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo.
Press Releases:
- Cal Poly Student Settles Public Records Lawsuit Against University (11/1/2024)
- Cal Poly Student Journalist, FAC Sue School for Withholding Public Records (4/23/2024)
Legal Documents:
- Settlement Agreement (10/31/2024)
- Verified First Amended Petition for Writ of Mandate (4/25/2024)
- FAC Letter to Cal Poly Regarding Mustang News Reporter’s Public Records Requests (6/16/2023)