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Wisconsin legislature’s ‘hastily convened’ meeting condemned by state FOI Council

FAC March 10, 2011

Declaring yesterday’s unexpected meeting by the Wisconsin legislature “precisely the sort of action the state’s Open Meetings Law was intended to preclude,” Bill Lueders President of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, issued a statement of condemnation over what he believes are the legislature’s violations of the open meeting laws.   The last-minute meeting resulted in many of the state’s public employees losing their ability to bargain collectively. Here is the statement in full as posted on

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Restrictive open records law delayed in Utah

FAC March 9, 2011

A bill that sailed through the Utah legislature in 72 hours and would have restricted access to government documents has been put on hold at the request of the state’s governor. According to the Salt Lake Tribune the bill would “prohibit the disclosure of text messages and instant messages, allow government agencies to charge fees that can include administrative and overhead costs and require requesters wanting records protected by the government to show with a

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Media seek juror names in upcoming Barry Bonds trial

FAC March 9, 2011

News organizations have asked a federal judge to keep the names of jurors public in the upcoming perjury trial of Barry Bonds, baseball’s home run champion. Bonds, who is accused of lying to a federal grand jury when asked whether he had knowingly used steroids, faces trial March 21. Prosecutors and defense lawyers say that jurors will risk harassment if their names are made public. Duffy Carolan, a media lawyer who also is a member

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Judge halts attempt to stop movie critical of Mexican courts

FAC March 9, 2011

In a test of free expression, a Mexican court has reversed a judge’s order to halt screening of a movie that exposed injustices in the country’s criminal court system. The documentary — “Presumed Guilty” — recounted the case of a man convicted twice of murder, even though there was little evidence to support the prosecution. The showings were halted after a witness to the case asserted that his depiction in the award-winning movie violated his

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Animal rights protest near pet store upheld

FAC March 4, 2011

Animal-rights advocates can protest near a pet store, despite a shopping mall’s rules that would have limited access, a state appeals court ruled. The Second District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles said the California constitution protects nondisruptive political activity at shopping centers. The Westside Pavilion mall in Los Angeles would have prevented Puppies Aren’t Products from protesting near the Barkworks Pup & Stuff store and would have banned protests entirely on busy shopping days,

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