FAC represents journalist Joey Scott in a letter to Imperial County pushing back against its assertion that it can deny public records regarding the county’s cooperation with federal law enforcement due to the “Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution” and “Comity doctrine.”
Our letter notes: “Perhaps a federal agency or official would prefer that the County not disclose the requested records, but the Supremacy Clause demands compliance only with laws of the United States, not mere wishes.” and “[a]ny asserted “comity” between federal and state or local governments cannot justify violating the plain language of the Public Records Act.”