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right to know

Open government: Whistleblowers win challenge to law protecting them

donal brown March 29, 2011

The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld the False Claims Act (FCA) that allows whistleblowers to bring claims for the government to recover damages for fraud committed by government contractors. The American Civil Liberties Union, OMB Watch and the Government Accountability Project sued under the First Amendment and the public’s right to know to challenge the “seal” provision in the act that allows employees to file claims without exposing their identities to their

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Supreme Court: Safety issues debated in Navy freedom of information case

donal brown December 2, 2010

The Supreme Court heard arguments in a case pitting the public’s right to know against national security concerns over potential terrorist acts. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press December 1, 2010 By Stephen Miller The delicate act of balancing the public’s right to know with national security in a time of terrorism was displayed on the floor of the U.S. Supreme Court in arguments held Wednesday morning. The case before the court,

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Federal appeals court rejects pleas for anonymity in school admissions suit

donal brown November 18, 2010

A federal appeals court voted not to rehear an appeal by juvenile plaintiffs bringing a civil rights lawsuit challenging the admissions policies of an Hawaii school. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press November 16, 2010 By Stephen Miller Two U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco (9th Cir.) judges voiced strong dissenting opinions in the court’s recent decision not to rehear an appeal made by juvenile plaintiffs who wished to proceed anonymously

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California court unseals records in murder of eight-year-old

donal brown June 17, 2010

Weighing the family’s right to privacy to the public’s right to know, a Superior Court judge released most of the records sought by the media pertaining to last year’s murder of an eight-year-old girl. The judge withheld autopsy photos. -db Tracy Press Jun 14, 2010 By Jaclyn Hirsch STOCKTON, Calif.  — Judge Linda Lofthus decided this afternoon to unseal most of the grand jury transcript and most of the evidence that police used to charge

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Brown Act: Editorial opposes change to open meeting law

donal brown June 14, 2010

To save government agencies money, the Senate Budget Committee wants to suspend the requirement that agendas be posted 72 hours in advance. -db Merced Sun-Star Editorial June. 11, 2010 The same money problems that saw 2009 become the newspaper industry’s worst financial year in history now threaten a key part of the public’s right to know. The state Senate’s Budget Conference Committee wants to water down the power of the Brown Act. That’s the law

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