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Showing 351 - 360 of 691 results

Asked and Answered

Newsgathering

Audio Recording, Meetings

[…] to the tariffs of a public utility, or (3) to any telephonic communication system used for communication exclusively within a state, county, city and county, or city correctional facility. (f) This section does not apply to the use of hearing aids and similar devices, by persons afflicted with impaired hearing, for the purpose of […]

June 14, 2009
Latest News

For the Supreme Court’s decision NOT to rule on the constitutionality of gay marriage, you can blame Jerry Brown

[…] its laws, in court. Like a private lawyer representing a client, he is supposed to defend California whether or not he thinks the state's legal position is correct. . . . Brown's absence may have helped his own political fortunes, but, ironically, his strategy of non-participation ultimately may play into the hands of Prop […]

June 26, 2013
Asked and Answered

Court Records

Unsealing exhibits cited in a judicial ruling

[…] seek are not under seal, you may ultimately have to file a motion to unseal them. (As a practical matter, you may first want to try a letter to the clerk's office, explaining why the documents are not under seal and should be made available to the public.) Although any member of the public […]

June 14, 2009
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Public Comment Limits Don’t Allow Time To Make Case

[…] to participate in the public comment period, and coordinate what you will say so that the group’s entire message is conveyed; and use alternative channels of communication — writing letters to the board — to send your message. I hope you found this answer helpful, and wish you the best of luck in your endeavors.

May 29, 2010
Asked and Answered

First Amendment Newsgathering

The DA gives information to other media, but refuses to make it available to our newspaper

[…] situation, too, while covering a state hospital. The public relations liaison decided she did not like questions posed to her by our newspaper, and wrote us a letter stating we would no longer be given access to the hospital or her office. I believe our editors spoke with her about this issue, she came […]

August 20, 2010
Asked and Answered

First Amendment

Are words chosen for tombstone protected speech or can a Public Cemetery District censor them?

[…] see the artwork and approve the verbiage I wanted before the monument maker could move forward with making the bench. Incredulous, I obtained a copy of the letter they sent out to the monument maker. It reads as follows. "To whom it may concern: "Effective immediately, please fax a rough draft of all the […]

October 4, 2011
Latest News

Blog Cases

Successful outcome in FAC suit pulls back curtain on “deliberative process”

[…] qualified as, for example, ‘deliberative process,’ was insufficient without a further analysis required by balancing." Peter Scheer, FAC executive director, said the case is important for " correcting a huge misconception among government officials who believe that a blanket of secrecy covers all records about how they make official decisions. The court in this […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
- Public Records
August 23, 2015
Asked and Answered

Brown Act First Amendment

Commissioner advised speaking to press could give rise to Brown Act violation

[…] Brown Act and that what is meant to be prohibited is "subterfuge; a concerted plan to engage in collective deliberation on public business through a series of letters or telephone calls passing from one member of the governing body to the next." Roberts v. City of Palmdale, 5 Cal. 4th 363, 376 (1993). An […]

December 5, 2011
Asked and Answered

CPRA

PRA request from the California Engineer Board

[…] is presumed public and must be disclosed unless a specific exemption applies. Gov’t Code § 6252(e). If you make a written request to the Board (a sample letter is available here) it must determine whether the records are subject to the PRA within 10 days of your request, and "promptly notify" you, in writing, […]

April 14, 2016
Asked and Answered

CPRA Police Records

Should I need authorization to access arrest records?

[…] or security files compiled by any other state or local police agency, or any investigatory or security files compiled by any other state or local agency for correctional, law enforcement, or licensing purposes." Gov't Code Section 6254(f). While some information must be disclosed under the PRA, it may not be everything your client is […]

November 22, 2011