Asked & Answered

Accessing information on claims against school districts Q: Are claims filed against a school district public records and if so can a district redact names of minors or other information mentioned in such claims for any reason? A: The issue of access to Tort Claims Act claim forms has come up in several cases.  It is by now clear that claim forms are not exempt from disclosure under the pending litigation exemption (Gov. Code section

Requesting surveillance tapes Q: I have been trying to get the below questions from a sheriff station, but unfortunately they have given me the runaround.  I was hoping your agency could assist me with my inquiries. How do I request surveillance tape that was shot in the booking cell of the West Hollywood Sheriff Station? How long do the surveillance tapes for a booking cell stay on file before they are deleted? A: You can

Proprietary information in the public record Q: The city council appointed a Taser task force. The City Attorney’s office regularly reminded the task force that it was subject to the Brown Act. I recorded the public meetings on video, and uploaded to YouTube part of a presentation by a consultant for Taser Intl., given at one of the meetings. Now YouTube has removed the video, as a result of a third-party claim of copyright infringement.