First Amendment News

When the Redding City Council abruptly acted to scuttle plans to build a new police station, they may have violated no open-meeting rule and even made the right decision given the state of the economy, but the suddenness of the vote violated the spirit of the Brown Act, giving the public no chance to consider the issue adequately. –DB Record-Searchlight January 25, 2009 Editorial Our view: The right path toward a police station is a

In his second day in office, President Obama issued an executive order limiting the ability of presidents and ex-presidents to restrict release of presidential records. According to the Associated Press, the order overturns a 7-year-old order by former President Bush that expanded presidential authority to keep their White House records private. Under the Obama order, requests to suppress release are limited to national security, law enforcement and internal communications records. The order allows the national

To obey fire safety regulations, the Lodi City Council locked out dozens of people from a meeting on a Wal-Mart environmental impact report. Citizens threatened to file a suit under the open meeting Brown Act, and the Council agreed to rescind their approval of the report and hold a new hearing in a venue large enough to accommodate all concerned citizens. -DB The Sacramento Bee Thursday, Jan. 15, 2009 By Loretta Kalb LODI, Calif. –

The St. Helena City Council adopted a resolution allowing for full disclosure of agenda details for closed sessions. The Napa County District Attorney’s office charged in December that the council violated the open meeting Brown Act in failing to notify the public of items under discussion in a closed meeting on a flood control project. -DB St. Helena Star Thursday, January 15, 2009 By Jesse Duarte ST. HELENA, Calif. – The City Council has adopted

A California mayor has agreed to remain on the sidelines in public hearings regarding claims made by two city employees alleging that he damaged their health by creating a hostile work environment. Mayor Roger Hernandez agreed to pay any damages should one of the employees, Chris Chung, file a claim and win, thereby creating for himself a financial stake in the outcome of the hearings and a conflict of interest. -DB San Gabriel Valley Tribune