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Joe's Hit Records!
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HOT!: Catch the latest Florida open government news with The Florida Sunshine Review ...
Open records and meetings links, resources.
Many Web links are born to die. Even if that should happen with those below, this list can still be of value.
Obtain the story by trying the headline or keywords in a search engine for another link, check the online archives or back issues of the news organization involved, or use Lexis-Nexis or other commercial databases that might be available to you or through your local public library.
February 25, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
 Scripps Howard Newspapers editorial: Don’t let Florida lawmakers delete public record with one keystroke …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Deal may end Sunshine lawsuit in Venice over e-mail …
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by Erika Pesantes: Boynton Beach official questions whether e-mails violated the Sunshine Law …
Fort Myers News-Press editorial: Sunshine laws need update for a new era …
Palm Beach Post, by Don Jordan: Boynton commissioners discuss city business through e-mail and out of Sunshine …
Lakeland Ledger: Open government requires e-mails in government be accessible …
February 17, 2008
Records keep a rockin’:
Business records of a closed Palm Beach wellness center: Lance Williams of the San Francisco Chronicle taps public records from the Sunshine State about the closed Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center that was dispensing steriods through online transactions that users couldn’t make through more traditional channels ...
School list of hazardous areas for kids walking to school: Christian M. Wade of The Tampa Tribune on how Hillsborough County public schools are struggling to find money to fix areas that pose hazardous walking for public school students ...
Civil lawsuit: CBS4.com of Miami-Fort Lauderdale on a man who sues Wal-Mart after being bitten by snake while shopping in the garden center at a Pembroke Pines store ...
E-mail, school budget: Al Everson of the West Volusia Beacon about the difficulties in making sense of the Volusia County public school system budget ...
February 15, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Associated Press, Jessica Gresko and John Pain: Practice of deleting e-mails by Florida lawmakers contributed to the Sansom controversy …
News Sun of Sebring, by Ed Baldridge: Man uses public records in seeking what was recorded in the courtrooms in Highlands County …
Highlands Today, by Jim Konkoly: Chief judge of 10th Judicial District plan to review policy on having a back-up-audio recording running continuously in courtrooms from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., even during recess or not being in session …
News Sun of Sebring, by Ed Baldridge: Man seeks public records to learn what was recorded in the courtrooms in Highlands County …
Charlotte Sun, by Elaine Allen-Emrich: Advocates say North Port city commissioner erred in banning comments during a public meeting due to the potential for personal attacks …
St. Petersburg Times Florida Politics “Buzz” blog: Northwest Florida State College trustees defend president’s meeting with former House Speaker Ray Sansom in response to a Florida Attorney General’s Office inquiry …
February 9, 2008
Plane truth: Florida’s Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp’s trips home are costly for taxpayers: State flight records reviewed by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s Josh Hafenbrack, Megan O’Matz and John Maines indicate state taxpayers are racking up big expenses to cover Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp’s plane rides courtesy of the state. Kottkamp billed taxpayers $425,000 for 365 flights on state aircraft during his first two years in office, with two thirds of those flights getting him back and forth to Fort Myers where he and his wife own a home. The reporters also discovered his wife and toddler “flew for free on some two dozen trips, despite rules requiring them to pay. Those flights cost taxpayers $12,974,” the story says. As a result of the Sun-Sentinel’s inquiry, Kottkamp will reimburse the state for his family’s flights.
Records keep a rockin’:
E-mail: The Buzz blog crew at the St. Pete Times on how Northwest Florida State College officials are trying to explain themselves in the wake of Sunshine Law concerns ...
Auditor’s report and backup audit documents: David Damron and Jason Garcia of the Orlando Sentinel on questionable spending by the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau and a questionable omission by an auditor ...
Funeral home licensing and regulatory records: Curtis Krueger of the St. Petersburg Times on problems at Tampa’s Morning Glory Funeral Chapel ...
Medicaid statistics on pilot program: The Associated Press on problems with a 2-year-old Medicaid privatization program being piloted in Duval and Broward counties. About 25 percent of doctors have left the program ...
February 8, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times, by Alex Leary: Sansom probe turns to secretive college meeting …
Northwest Florida Daily News, by Kelli Hernandez: Northwest Florida State College board of trustees to meet to discuss response to state attorney general’s concerns about board compliance with Sunshine Law …
Northwest Florida Daily News, column by Pat Rice: Northwest Florida State College feeling the heat from the Sunshine Law …
St. Petersburg Times editorial: New report by governor’s commission on open government provides road map for bringing Florida’s strong reputation for Sunshine into the 21st century …
Orlando Sentinel editorial: Follow-through is needed to make public meetings and records more accessible …
Naples Daily News, column by Phil Lewis: Public meeting by computer is coming to Delray Beach …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Venice city officials clamp down on access to e-mails …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, column by Eric Ernst: Open government takes a step back with Venice’s removal of online access to public officials’ e-mails …
Miami Herald, by Kathleen McGrory: Teachers’ union sues for Miami-Dade School Board minutes …
Sarasota Hearld Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Judge halts e-mail search as part of Sunshine Lawsuit in Venice …
January 30, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Miami Herald, by Alex Leary: Florida House Speaker Sansom probe now involves Northwest Florida State College Trustees …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: City of Venice places new limits on officials’ use of e-mails …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial: City of Venice wisely enacts new rules to protect and preserve electronic public records …
January 26, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Associated Press, by Brendan Farrington: Commission on Open Government OKs proposals to Gov. Charlie Crist that will be taken up by state lawmakers …
Fort Myers News-Press: Florida attorney general criticizes meeting involving House Speaker Ray Sansom and community college board …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Sunshine Law is being revamped to keep pace with technology advances …
Daytona Beach News-Journal, by Jim Saunders: More public access urged about government activities in Florida …
Ocala Star-Banner, by Lloyd Dunkelberger: Policy changes would give public more access to government records …
January 25, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Tallahassee Democrat, by Bill Cotterell: Fees for open records spark division among members of the state’s Commission on Open Government …
Naples Daily News, by Liam Dillon: Florida Gulf Coast University bypasses open records law in selecting firm for school’s highest-profile project …
Palm Beach Post, by Joel Engelhardt: Some Palm Beach County commissioners just don’t get that the Sunshine Law means what it says …
Tallahassee Democrat edtiorial: Obama’s public records order echoes moves by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist …
Bradenton Herald, by Sylvia Lim: Court asked to settle dispute involving Manatee County and man seeking up to 6,000 names, addresses and telephone numbers of employees and dependents …
January 19, 2008
Critical flaws in Florida’s 911 system: The Sarasota Herald-Tribune’s Zac Anders reviewed discipline and complaint reports about 911 centers across the state to conclude that Florida 911 workers annually “make hundreds of critical errors that endanger lives and leave people waiting for help.” This story, the first of three parts, points out that Florida’s 911 centers lack uniform standards, mandated training and have little oversight. The piece also points out all kinds of problems, from sending help to the wrong address to simply deciding not to send help when it is needed. Related links include graphics on standards and accreditation along with actual audio of troubling 911 calls. Very interesting reading from the first story like this I’ve seen in Florida.
January 18, 2008
Broward County officials are traveling on your dime: A sweeping review of travel records by Jennifer Gollan of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel involving Broward County taxing districts and elected officials in 31 local governments turned up plenty of questionable billings to taxpayers by officials, including luxury hotels and chauffeured rides. Lauderhill Mayor Richard Kaplan, Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper and Pembrook Pines Mayor Frank Ortis are among the officials who went to conferences within 35 miles or less and charged taxpayers for multi-night stays at expensive hotels. Five Central Broward Water Control District officials tagged taxpayers for $380 so their spouses and children could join them at parties in Key West and Key Largo during conferences. And those are just a few of the examples. The story includes a sidebar about various other travel expenses since January 2007 along with a separate look at Palm Beach County officials and their billing exploits.
Florida Sunshine Review:
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by Ihosavani Rodriguez: City of Hollywood’s ID procedures for attending public meetings skirts open government laws …
Tallahassee Democrat, by Nic Corbett: Tallahassee man faces criminal charge after posting information online about a Tallahassee Police Department officer …
January 17, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times, by Alex Leary: Florida attorney general looking into public records law issues regarding Florida House Speaker Ray Sansom …
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times, by Alex Leary: “Minutes” surface from March meeting of House Speaker Ray Sansom and Northwest Florida College officials …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Florida’s top law enforcement agency investigating potential Sunshine Law violations involving Venice city officials …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Sarasota activist says Venice city officials held back on turning over all e-mails she requested …
The Florida Times-Union, by Tia Mitchell: Does a glass door block the Sunshine at Jacksonville City Council? …
Tallahassee Democrat editorial: Florida’s state lawmakers enjoy cloud cover amid Sunshine rules they apply to others …
South Florida Times, by Elgin Jones: Dania Beach city commissioners may have violated Sunshine Law with private discussions …
Cape Coral Daily Breeze, by McKenzie Cassidy: Interpretation of “special services fee” clouds public records law …
January 12, 2009
Florida Sunshine Review:
Miami Herald, by Amy Sherman: Dania commissioners’ e-mails may have violated the Sunshine Law …
Florida Times-Union, by David Hunt: Florida’s Sunshine Law under review in 2009 …
Highlands Today, by Jim Konkoly: Man sues Highlands County over public records request …
Northwest Florida Daily News, by Kelli Hernandez: Northwest Florida State College president says meeting wasn’t meant to be kept private regarding state House speaker …
November 23, 2008
State’s open record laws often violated: Public records should be easily obtained by the public. But a statewide audit by members of the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors indicates "that many school districts, sheriff's offices and county administrative offices don't understand how they should respond to public records requests - even though the state constitution and law clearly requires access with minimal restrictions,” Brendan Farrington of The Associated Press reports. As part of the test to see how well officials comply with records requests, reporters and volunteers fanned out statewide to school, county administrative office and sheriff’s offices to ask for e-mails about local budgets. “Almost 43 percent of the offices failed to comply with the law, either because they required a name, reason or written request or because they weren't able to reasonably produce a record,” the AP reported. In Jefferson County, school staff even took the license plate number of one reporter who asked for records.
Florida Sunshine Review:
Fort Myers News-Press editorial: State and local officials need to be educated on how to handle public records requests as the law requires …
Palm Beach Post, by Cara Fitzpatrick: Sheriff’s offices in Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie counties flunk audit on public records …
Tallahassee Democrat, by Nic Corbett: Jefferson County superintendent tracks down reporter who made public records request …
The Associated Press, by Brendan Farrington: Mixed results on public records audit for officials in Manatee County …
Naples Daily News staff report: Collier sheriff fails secret public records audit while two other agencies pass …
Naples Daily News, column by Phil Lewis: Government as a whole rates an “F” in adhering to public records laws …
Orlando Sentinel, by Amanda Welch: public records requests befuddle Central Florida county officials …
Daytona News-Journal, by Jim Saunders: Foster kids need access to records, open government reform group says …
Tallahassee Democrat editorial: Florida state lawmakers should have to live with the open government law they impose on local governments …
November 19, 2008
Florida plagued by arrests, disciplinary actions for sex-crime teachers: Public records can help put statewide issues into perspective. State teacher disciplinary records reviewed by Denise-Marie Balona of the Orlando Sentinel indicate that at least 150 Florida teachers have faced discipline during the last three years after accusations of sexual misconduct with students. The story notes that disciplinary cases involving sexual misconduct are increasing – particularly among female educators. “And modern technology is helping teachers prey on children via cell phones and e-mail. In the sexual-misconduct cases reviewed by the Sentinel, about half of the teachers who were reprimanded, suspended, put on probation or had their certificates revoked used e-mail, MySpace pages and text messages to flirt and talk about sex with students,” the story says. The state has, however, taken some steps to limit offenses. This story includes links to photos of teachers accused of inappropriate behavior with students along with details on specific cases from selected counties.
Florida Sunshine Review:
Fernandina Beach News-Leader, by Ryan Smith: Nassau County Commission says state lawmakers should apply Sunshine Law to themselves …
Pensacola News-Journal, by Jamie Page: Two Pensacola residents sue park board over lack of a public comment period at meetings …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Sunshine Law trial involving Venice officials could be delayed …
Ocala Star-Banner, by Christopher Curry: Lakeland resident draws backlash with public records requests …
Seminole Chronicle, by Abraham Aboraya: State Ethics Commission clears Winter Springs commissioner Rick Brown of open meetings laws violation …
Pasco school records demand sparks outrage from school leaders …
Election takes care of questionable open meetings compliance at Ava Maria …
November 2, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Lawsuit alleges code names and hand-delivered memos used to sidestep Sunshine Law in Venice …
Northwest Daily News, by Dusty Ricketts: Fort Walton Beach City Council sets up meetings to repair problems from Sunshine Law violations …
Lakeland Ledger, by John Chambliss: Man wins public records fight with Polk County schools over employee data …
Naples Daily News editorial: Openness, public records helped make best of bad incident in East Naples …
*Vero Beach Press-Journal editorial: Open government commisison’s work should not be wasted (*registration required) …
October 27, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Northwest Daily News, by Dusty Ricketts: Fort Walton Beach to address Sunshine Law violations and revisit 125 development projects …
Tampa Tribune, guest column by Charles Davis: Elected officials give public the slip by using private e-mail accounts …
Boston Globe, by Coleman M. Herman: Public records should be public but aren’t always in Massachusetts (note Florida reference in this piece) …
Bradenton Herald, by Executive Editor Joan Krauter: Bulletin boards sufficient to announce meeting, Spring Hill fire district attorney says …
October 22, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Fort Myers News-Press, by Bill Cotterell: Special open government panel urges law that would require the state to reveal its personal records on citizens …
Central Florida Future, by Stephanie Wilken: Open government experts say University of Central Florida impeachment process regarding Student Government Association senator may have violated state Sunshine Law …
October 21, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Northwest Florida Daily News, by Dusty Ricketts: City of Fort Walton Beach violated Sunshine Law for seven years …
The Associated Press: Florida’s Commission on Open Government to discuss recommendations for the governor …
October 19, 2008
Reform school alumni recount severe beatings, rapes: Some public documents can remain relevant for decades – even from a century ago. Miami Herald reporter Carol Marbin Miller illustrates the point in this story about the horrific secrets regarding vicious beatings and rapes over the years at the Florida State Reform School for young offenders. This is a disturbing story. Here’s an excerpt: “On Tuesday, about a half-dozen alumni will return to what is now called the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys to confront the most painful chapter of their troubled lives. The White House Boys, as a group of grown men now call themselves – kept one of the institution's most shameful secrets for half a century: what was done to them inside a squat, dark, cinder-block building called The White House. There, they say, guards beat them ferociously with a lash, some dozens of times. Some men say they also were sexually abused in a crawl space below the dining hall they call the ``rape room.'' The state is dedicating a memorial to those who suffered at a formal ceremony at the Marianna campus. Among the historic documents drawn upon for this story: PDF links to a report documenting beatings with a leather strap in 1911, a grand jury report on abuses from 1914 and a Senate committee’s 1903 hearing on troubles at the school.
October 15, 2008
Records reload:
Police dispatch records: Cristina Silva of the St. Petersburg Times on how plice have been called twice over the last year to St. Pete City Council member Jeff Danner’s house regarding domestic disputes ...
Invoice records: Kara Kenney of the WBBH NBC-2 in Fort Myers on how much an internal investigation into Lee County Manager Don Stilwell cost taxpayers ...
School enrollment counts: Kathy Bushouse of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on how enrollment dropped in Broward County public schools for the fourth straight year, leading to some important seismic shifts for the school system ...
Florida Department of Law Enforcement mid-year crime statistics: Lise Fisher of the Gainesville Sun on the latest state crime statistics that showed an overall crime increase for Florida during the first six months of 2008...
October 13, 2008
Records shout outs:
Federal campaign contributions: Mary Cristobal of the Central Florida Future, the University of Central Florida student newspaper, on presidential campaign donations made by UCF students, faculty and staff. Barrack Obama had raised the most at the time of this story, a nice campus enterprise piece ...
Internal memoes: Mike Deeson of Tampa Bay Channel 10 on a Pasco County utility customer system approved in 2005 but still isn’t up and running three years later ...
Gun confiscation records: Henry Pierson Curtis of the Orlando Sentinel on how police are confiscating tons of guns from criminals since a federal ban on assault weapons expired ...
IRS tax lien: Bruce Ritchie of the Tallahassee Democrat on the Florida Police Benevolent Association accusing Leon County Commissioner Ed Depuy of being a hypocrite for criticizing a challenger for his debts when records show DePuy had a tax lien of his own in 1986 ...
Florida Auditor General’s Office audit: Christopher O’Donnell of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune about an audit critical of Manatee County School District safety practices in screening workers ...
October 11, 2008
Borrowers Betrayed: Prepare to pick your jaw off the floor if you read these pieces from the Miami Herald. Reporters Jack Dolan, Rob Barry and Matthew Haggman tapped a variety of licensing, regulation and criminal records to uncover a series of stunning breakdowns regarding how the Florida Office of Financial Regulation allowed ex-convicts to become mortgage professionals and rip-off the public despite complaints to the agency. “Since 2000, regulators failed to weed out people with criminal histories, monitor scam operations and discipline crooked brokers, a Miami Herald investigation found.” The criminals licensed by the agency went on to fraud the public out of nearly $85 million, the story says. The agency head has since resigned and the Legislature is lining up to make changes to better protect the public from repeats. This is multi-media in fine form, with revealing stories, video, slide shows, graphics and more spread across a three-part presentation.
Florida Sunshine Review:
Hernando Today, by Tony Holt: Residents complain of Sunshine Law violation for being left out of Spring Hill Fire Department union negotiations …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Sunshine Law dominates at debate for Venice City Council elections …
Hernando Today, by Tony Holt: Bulletin boards sufficient to announce meeting, Spring Hill fire district attorney says …
October 6, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Beaches Leader, by Kathy Hartman: Sunshine Law is “garbage,” outgoing St. Johns County Commissioner says …
Naples Daily News, by Liam Dillon: Public-private roles raise questions on Ave Maria boards …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Sarasota activist Anthony Lorenzo faults Venice meeting at city manager’s house …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Top administrators meeting at interim Venice city manager’s house raises public meetings flag …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kathy Silverberg: Sunshine is simply doing public’s business in public …
Pensacola News-Journal, by Jamie Page: Public gets first chance to speak before Community Maritime Park Associates at meeting …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Judge says Venice officials must pay e-mail experts to retrieve e-mails from their personal computers in ongoing open government lawsuit …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Judge sets trail date for open government lawsuit involving nine current and former Venice city officials …
Naples Daily News, by Jenna Buzzacco: Union, bus driver sue Collier School Board members, saying they violated Sunshine Law …
WTBO Channel 8, by Steve Andrews:Lowry Park Zoo turns over records after threat of lawsuit …
August 27, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Orlando Sentinel, by Mike Bianchi: FSU must stop stonewalling on turning over list of NCAA violations …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Open government lawsuit could add to Venice budget woes …
Naples Daily News, column by Phil Lewis: Posting e-mails opens “e-meetings” to the public …
August 25, 2008
Heat’s on in the kitchen: State gets tough on health violations in Lee County eateries: Drew Sterwald of the Fort Myers News-Press reviewed three years of reports by the Florida Department of business and Professional Regulation to show that the number of Lee County restaurants shut down by inspectors jumped by more than four times in the fiscal year ending June 30. The story notes that the increase “far outpaced industry growth over the same three years; the number of food service licenses issued for sit-down restaurants in Lee County rose less than 9 percent over the same time period.
Statewide, emergency closures increased 30 percent over the same three years, from 463 to 600.” Beefed up inspections appear to be at least part of the explanation. In a sidebar to this story, Sterwald reports that Florida ranks No. 1 for the last three years on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Most Dangerous States for Eating Out. here.
August 20, 2008
Records rock-a-thon:
Settlement agreement, administrative complaint: Julie Patel of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on unprecedented penalties against Allstate that “requires the insurance company to pay a $5 million fine, reduce homeowner insurance premiums statewide by 5.6 percent within 30 days, add 100,000 new homeowner policies within three years and forgive a $175 million loan to its Florida subsidiaries” ...
Florida Bar referee’s report: Michael Braga of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune about a circuit judge’s recommendation that Sarasota attorney John A. Yanchek be suspended from practicing law for two years after the attorney admitted to mortgage fraud and lying about the existence of escrow funds ...
Police records, driver history records from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles: Stephen Thompson of The Tampa Tribune and Yolanda Fernandez of News Channel 8 about a man charged with DUI manslaughter in the deaths of a man and his passenger on a motorcycle in Clearwater ...
Voter registration statistics: Adrian G. Uribarri of the Orlando Sentinel on the breakdown of registered Republicans in state House District 34 as part of a Voter’s Guide piece on the race for the seat ...
August 19, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Aaron Kessler: Manatee and Duval County clerks of court will soon offer foreclosure sales online …
Miami Herald, by Matthew I. Pinzur: Online public records become issue in Miami-Dade clerk of courts race …
August 17, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
St. Petersburg Times, by Rita Farlow: It’s OK to look at photos in D.C. Madam suicide case but not to publish, judge says …
Tallahassee Democrat, by Bruce Ritchie: Judge orders Jefferson County Tax Collector Lois Howell-Hunter to turn over public records she had denied Caroline Carswell, her opponent in the primary election …
Naples Daily News, column by Phil Lewis: Opinions differ on open government and journalism practice with interviews …
Naples Daily News, by Leslie Williams: State lawmaker questions whether Alligator Alley lease meeting by Florida Department of Transportation officials violated Sunshine Law …
August 16, 2008
Miami grand jury calls for mental health law reform: A local document occasionally can have statewide implications. A Miami-Dade grand jury report obtained by Susannah A. Nesmith of the Miami Herald calls “for sweeping reforms of the state's law dealing with the dangerously mentally ill, warning of another Virginia Tech-like tragedy if the system isn't fixed." Similar to the man who killed 32 people and himself at Virginia Tech last year, the report says that Florida has similar laws to Virginia’s and also has mentally ill people who are falling through the cracks. The grand jury made 19 recommendations for changes to help diffuse the dangerously mentally ill in Florida before they hurt themselves and others. See the report here.
August 15, 2008
Records on a roll:
Wal-Mart annual report on jobs: Craig Cox of Alachua County Today on how the Wal-Mart Distribution Center has met its obligations to create at least 600 jobs in Alachua based on an annual report the retail giant must make each year until 2014 ...
Inspection reports on health facilities: Bob LaMendola of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel about inspection reports and results of complaint investigations involving most Florida health facilities now being put online by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration ...
Search warrant, criminal court records, police report: Nomaan Merchant of the St. Petersburg Times on a 66-year-old sex offender caught up in a youth online sex sting by a state CyberCrime Unit ...
Campaign finance reports: Eric Pfahler of TCPalm.com on the latest St. Lucie County financial reports for local candidates ...
Overtime pay records: Mark Schlueb of the Orlando Sentinel on the soaring costs of overtime as Orlando Police confront crime ...
August 14, 2008
Computer error strikes teen’s DUI conviction: Sometimes the mere checking of a record can lead to righting a wrong. Florida Times-Union reporter Bridget Murphy’s check on a drunken driving conviction revealed “a teenager whose drunken driving paralyzed another motorist disappeared from some state records after computer errors, causing government officials to mistakenly reinstate his driving privileges." Murphy’s check of records at the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles found that Brandon Hoffman, the 17-year-old driver who hit Don Worley and left him in a wheelchair following the 2005 crash in Flagler County, had no felony conviction on his record. The revelation prompted the state to revoke Hoffman’s license and restore his conviction record. It also pointed out computer problems to be fixed in the Flagler County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office.
August 13, 2008
Records on the case:
Foreclosure records: Mary Wozniak of the Fort Myers Free-Press about foreclosures of big-ticket homes in Lee County, looking at the Top 10 foreclosures on single-family residences and how “if you live big, you can also lose big." The story includes a photo gallery of the foreclosure mansions and a link for looking up foreclosures in Southwest Florida …
Police personnel files: Corey Clark of the Tallahassee Democrat on the “exemplary" records of two Tallahassee Police Department officers before a drug-and-gun sting operation that went terribly wrong, leading to an undercover informant’s death …
City attorney’s report on contract procedures: Timothy J. Gibbons of The Florida Times-Union Jacksonville city attorneys calling for upgraded procedures at the Jacksonville Port Authority in the wake of an FBI investigation into former board member Tony Nelson and port contracts …
Civil lawsuit that included liens and sworn affidavits: Aisling Swift of the Naples Daily News about a man’s efforts to market, tie up and sell property that its owners did not want to sell ...
August 12, 2008
State let crooked brokers keep stealing: Public records can help expose how devastating it can be for consumers when government regulators do not regulate as they should. Regulatory files and orders, criminal court records, agency reports and other documents fuel this Miami Herald story by Rob Barry, Matthew Haggman and Jack Dolan about how the Florida Department of Financial Services repeatedly caught mortgage professionals breaking the law – including stealing from clients – but allowed them to remain in business with few consequences. One woman with a mortgage company “had forged documents to fleece lenders. She had skimmed money off a customer's loan. She had lied to conceal 19 questionable mortgages," the story said. Regulators, however, didn’t revoke her license or call for a criminal probe. Instead, she got fined, promised to stop breaking the law and then “went on to steal $2.5 million in loans and nine more homes – including one from a recently widowed, disabled Vietnam veteran and another from a blind, 79-year old woman with Alzheimer's disease." Only after a judge had tossed the woman in jail did the department revoke her license, the story says.
August 10, 2008
The Caylee Anthony Case: Public records such as case documents and jail audio recordings make this multi-media presentation from the Orlando Sentinel about the ongoing saga of missing 3-year-old Caylee Marie Anthony one of the most engaging stories you’ll read online. The presentation includes a video backstory, key players and a timeline of the Caylee case, which has become one of the most followed across the nation. There’s video that includes crime scene technicians visiting Caylee Anthony’s grandparents house; a photo gallery that includes Casey Anthony, Caylee’s mother and a key “person of interest" in the case; and, of course, all the recent stories reported by Sun-Sentinel staffers Sarah Lundy, Amy L. Edwards, Bianca Prieto and Walter Pacheco. Be sure to check out the phone recordings of Casey Anthony and her brother Lee from the Orange County jail, plus the case documents, which include a search warrant in the case and Casey Anthony’s arrest report.
Florida Sunshine Review:
Palm Beach Post, by Jennifer Sorentrue: Former U.S. Attorney Dexter Lehtinen sues South Florida water managers and alleges regarding proposed $1.75 billion U.S. sugar buyout …
Naples Daily News, column by Phil Lewis: State attorney should put Collier School Board to the test on possible Sunshine Law violations …
The News Sun, by Kevin J. Shutt: Clerk grants access to video regarding the theft of county fuel despite attorney’s advice …
July 26, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Fort Myers News-Press, by Jacob Ogles: Cape Coral officials face allegations of possible Sunshine Law violations …
Fort Myers News-Press, by Jacob Ogles: State investigates Cape Coral city council members on possible Sunshine Law violation …
Panama City News-Herald, by Ryan Burr: Anti-dissolution group alleges Sunshine Law violated by Cedar Grove officials …
Palm Beach Post, by Susan Spencer-Wendel: Judge rules that Wendy’s shooting video can be viewed regarding fatal death of Palm Beach County firefighter …
Florida Times-Union editorial: Voters will be watching for candidate positions on open government laws enforcement in Duval County State Attorney race …
Lakeland Ledger editorial: Judge used common cense and concern in recent ruling of private e-mails by Venice city officials …
July 3, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Judge grants access to three City Council members’ e-mails in case alleging open meeting violations …
Lakeland Ledger, by Rick Rousos: Legal fee information released regarding Polk County Opportunity Council defense of alleged open meeting violations …
Florida Times-Union editorial: Jacksonville City Council members have no excuses for any future Sunshine Law abuses given new model training program …
June 29, 2008
Records roll out:
E-mails: *Leslie Williams of the Naples Daily News on protest letters and e-mails pouring into Gov. Charlie Crist regarding a plan to put Allegator Alley up for rent (*free registration required) …
Nurse licensing records with the Florida Department of Health, police report: Molly Moorhead of the St. Petersburg Times about a Pasco-Hernando Community College instructor whose fraudulent nursing license was discovered after an online check by the college revealed her license number belonged to someone else …
Impact fees report: Nicholas Azzara of the Bradenton Herald on the struggle to track millions of dollars in impact fees for new roads collected from developers. The story includes a link to 39-page PDF report …
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report: Patty Pensa of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on five Palm Beach County hospitals cited for denying ER care ..
Federal Trade Commission statistics: Jacob Schneider of The Tampa Tribune on tips to help the elderly avoid identity theft scams. The story says Florida residents reported more than 50,000 cases of fraud or identity theft last year and lost an average of more than $2,000 per case ...
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Todd Ruger: Sarasota Sheriff’s Office settles Sunshine Law lawsuit, required to undergo training and pay $15,613 in legal fees …
Lakeland Ledger editorial page: Cloudiness on how to keep electronic communications records can lead to abuse and controversy regarding public officials …
St. Petersburg Times, by Dave DeCamp: Records of county commission candidate withheld in Pasco County due to law exemption …
Sarasota Herald Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Judge asked to order volunteer government board members to turn over computer e-mails in ongoing lawsuit over alleged Sunshine Law violations in Venice …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: E-mail training is insufficient for elected and appointed officials in Venice …
Tampa Bay Business Journal: Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation upgrades its online services …
June 15, 2008
Records in play:
FBI scam statistics, foreclosure records: Duane Marsteller and Brian Neill of the Bradenton Herald on how “rescue scams" are resulting in troubled homeowners signing away their rights to their own properties …
Tax revenue statistics on Seminole Tribe operations: John Holland of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on how Seminole Tribe gambling operations are thriving while Broward County is struggling...
Court files, dockets: Chris Tisch of the St. Petersburg Times on how post-conviction motions by prisoners are clogging Tampa Bay area courts ...
Utility records: Pedro Morales of the Fort Myers News-Press on how Southwest Florida utility companies are losing big money from customers not paying their fees …
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Open records case with Venice City Council draws national attention on freedom of information front …
Daytona Beach News-Journal: Gelber earns First Amendment award from First Amendment Foundation …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, column by Eric Ernst: Laws don’t take sides on public records at Venice City Council …
June 13, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Judge says Venice City Council members must hand over home PCs for retrieval of government-business e-mail …
ABC Action News.com: Florida Attorney General’s Office launches new Web site on most wanted fugitives …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Todd Ruger: Sarasota County arrests posted online ask a judge to rule that recorded telephone conversations of jail inmates are not public record …
Florida Times-Union editorial: Public records prices from Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office fall after newspaper inquiries …
Orlando Sentinel editorial: Attorney General McCollum’s “sunshine" advocate has an important role to play…
Florida Times-Union, by Paul Pinkham: Duval State Attorney Harry Shorstein changes policy on copying files sought by outside agencies …
Tallahassee Democrat, by Nic Corbett: Leon grand jury selection held in private …
Cape Coral Daily Breeze, by Matt Blumenfeld: Cape Coral conversations before meeting cloud open meetings mandate …
June 4, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: City of Venice promises to stop deleting records in open government case …
The Tampa Tribune, by Ray Reyes: Florida Attorney General’s Office launches new Web site on most wanted fugitives …
St. Petersburg Times, by Jonathan Abel: Attorneys for Nick Bollea, Hulk Hogan’s son, file lawsuit asking a judge to rule that recorded telephone conversations of jail inmates are not public record …
June 3, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Florida Times-Union editorial: City attorneys should seek attorney general’s opinion on legality of local ordinance allowing higher-than-usual costs for public records copies from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office …
Fort Myers News-Press, by Paul Flemming: Florida Attorney General’s Office appoints new attorney to focus on open government issues …
June 1, 2008
Leno may not get to meet Tallahassee’s best-known 101-year-old driver: Sometimes individual records aren’t public but the statistics derived from them are. Gerald Ensley of the Tallahassee Democrat proves the point in this story about 101-year-old Tallahassee driver Lillian Cox who has been invited to join Jay Leno on “The Tonight Show" but probably won’t go because of recent heart problems. Says the story: “Cox drives her 1984 Cadillac de Ville on short trips around Tallahassee. She never drives at night and admitted her family wants her to quit driving." The story also notes the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles cannot release information about individual drivers (at least not much) but would provide stats showing 11,218 people age 95 and over in Florida still have driving privileges whether they use them or not.
Records rewind:
Foreclosure records, property appraisals: Dick Hogan of the Fort Myers News-Press on how foreclosures are wrecking havoc with the budgets of homeowner groups in Lee County ...
Civil lawsuit: Elliott Jones of the Vero Beach Press-Journal on sexual harassment lawsuit by a former female employee at the Vero Beach office of the 19th Judicial Circuit Public Defender’s Office ...
Internal affairs report, police personnel file: Lisa J. Huriash of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on an internal affairs investigation in Coral Springs that concluded one police officer meant to embarrass or intimidate another during a traffic stop …
State campaign finance records: Adam C. Smith of the St. Petersburg Times about the role of Democratic Party rabble-rouser Jon Ausman in resolving the bitter dispute over Florida’s votes in the Democratic presidential primary …
May 31, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Florida Times-Union, by Tia Mitchell: Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office fees for public records copies are several times more than state law specifies …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Zac Anderson: Accusations of behind-the-scenes dealing in Venice ramp up requests for public records and raise questions …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Council member in Venice apologizes for possible violation of state public records law …
Fort Myers News-Press editorial: Crist keeps the sun shining for open government in capital…
Fort Myers News-Press, column by attorney Joe Adams (not the iDig Joe Adams): Records of condo associations must be made available to members …
May 29, 2008
Logjam snarls contractor complaints: Mc Nelly Torres of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel tapped complaint and other records from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation to peg a dramatic rise in complaints about unlicensed contractors in recent years along with a state backlog in getting to them. The story says consumer complaints against contractors are up 83 percent over the past four years, with jumps during and after the active hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005. Check out these numbers: 5,733 complaints were filed in 2003 followed by 8,758 in 2004, 11,557 in 2005 and 10,498 in 2006. Enforcement staffing, meanwhile, has stayed flat.
May 28, 2008
State knew about toxic Pinellas plume in 1999, records show: Public records can shed light on crucial agency decisions with consequences on public safety. In this case, for instance, Mark Douglas of News Channel 8 and Carlos Moncada of The Tampa Tribune report on documents that showed state regulators knew a toxic chemicals from industrial waste was migrating from a defense plant toward the Azalea neighborhood at least nine years ago and long before residents did. The records show a Florida Department of Environmental Protection staffer was concerned enough that he prepared a letter for the agency’s district director by 2001. The letter instructed plant owner Raytheon Network Centric Systems to relook the risk to the public and to alert neighbors with irrigation wells. The letter was never sent, and tests have since shown eight homes near the plant with contaminated irrigation wells. The DEP, after initially saying there was no health risks, says the risks are now unclear. This revealing story also includes a link to an irrigation wells database with reports, maps, videos, documents and stories.
May 26, 2008
Money no issue in investigating Boca Raton area abductions, killings: Public records can provide the taxpayer side of issues that might be overlooked otherwise. Spending records obtained by Leon Fooksman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel indicate aggressive spending on a nine-member task force investigating a series of abductions and killings linked to the Town Center mall in Boca Raton. The records show the task force formed in January has spent more than $108,000, with almost $94,000 for officer overtime pay and $14,700 in DNA testing. A federal grant will cover the money spent on overtime. The story says Boca Raton police and Palm Beach County deputies “are trying to determine if the Dec. 12 slayings of a mother and her 7-year-old daughter are related to an August carjacking and robbery of a 30-year-old woman and her 2-year-old son and the March 2007 killing of a 52-year-old mother who lived west of Boca Raton." This story also includes a link to a database with five years of violent crime data at South Florida malls.
Records roll call:
Audit, property appraisals, Florida Department of Law Enforcement records: Sarah Okeson of Florida Today on a proposed $2 million state land buy along the Indian River that raises several concerns, in part from an auditor’s report that said the purchase “would not be based on sound valuation, would not be consistent with the public purpose for land acquisition by governmental agencies, and is not necessary" ...
Jail records, arrest report, Florida Department of Corrections prison records: Neil Johnson of The Tampa Tribune about a registered sexual offender released from prison on November who is now charged with raping a 10-year-old girl in Tampa …
Federal campaign contribution records: Jim Saunders of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on fundraising efforts by New Smyrna Beach Democrat Suzanne Kosmas to unseat U.S. Rep. Tom Feeney in the District 24 post in Congress …
School district leave records, city meeting records: Ihosvani Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Hollywood city commissioner Beam Furr defending his use of leave time from his library job at Flanagan High School ...
Florida Sunshine Review:
Fort Myers News-Press, by Jim Ash: Sunshine Law supporters beaming over how open government fared with recent legislative session …
Missouri Associated Press, analysis by David A. Lieb: Missouri governor responds to Sunshine Law violation allegations by retaliating with his own use of Missouri’s open-records law …
Hot off the presses:
Thomas Conner of the Chicago Sun-Times writes about the MTV reality show “The Paper," which follows the staff of the Circuit, the student newspaper at Cypress Bay High School in Florida’s very own Weston …
May 25, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Orlando Sentinel, by Josh Robbins: State schools are inconsistent going public with records …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Sunshine lawsuit against city of Venice by activist stirs up talk, speculation …
Sarsota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: City manager claims Sunshine Law was violated …
Florida Times-Union, by Paul Pinkham: State attorney candidates in Jacksonville share views on open government laws …
Stuart News editorial: Florida’s open meeting law still enables government to pull down the shades …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota resident files complaint against Venice officials, alleging Sunshine Law violations …
May 12, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Highland Today editorial: Negotiation with proposed Highlands County administrator illustrates how fortunate Floridians are to have strong government access laws …
Bradenton Herald, column by Joan Krauter: Let’s keep the Sunshine beaming for Trailer Estates residents …
Florida Times-Union, by Paul Pinkham: Times-Union plans to sue state attorney over handling of probe records …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Anthony Cormier: Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office accused of violating Florida’s open meetings law …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Venice mayor disputes claim that Sunshine Law was broken …
Stuart News editorial: Fellsmere follies trample open government and taxpayers …
Highlands Today, by Bill Rettew Jr.: Local public watchdog Preston Colby is back in court seeking public records …
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, by Kim Hackett: Venice Mayor Ed Martin denies violation of Sunshine Law …
Boca Raton News, by John Johnston: Proposed "Voice of the People Act" on meetings draws mixed reviews …
Broward New Times, The Daily Pulp blog by Bob Norman: Public records request shows how in government gets around the spirit of and intent of the Sunshine Law …
Bradenton Herald editorial: Manatee County needs to upgrade its act in following-open government laws …
Florida Times-Union, by Kevin Turner: Fernandina Beach Inn owners legal actions include allegation of Sunshine Law violation …
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by Sarah Talalay: Suit against new Marlins ballpark moves forward but open records violation point dismissed by judge …
Daytona Beach News-Journal, by Mark I. Johnson: Public records access getting easier in New Smyrna Beach …
Sunshine Sunday, March 16, 2008
Sunshine Sunday is an annual focus by Florida newspapers and other media on the value of open government. Since it began in Florida, the effort has gone national and expanded to “Sunshine Week." Aside from sample stories posted here, read more articles and see cartoons through the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors’ Web site …
Tallahassee Democrat: Gov. Crist proclaims a week of sunshine …
South Florida Sun-Sentinel editorial: Sunshine Sunday calls attention to Florida’s open records and meetings laws …
Tampa Tribune, guest column by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum: Florida should be proud is of Sunshine Week …
Florida Times-Union editorial: Practical power of public records can help people make better life choices, keep government accountable …
Bradenton Herald, by Nicholas Azzara and Grace Agostin: Manatee government works in the sunshine …
Lakeland Ledger, guest column by Barbara Petersen: Latest audit of agencies regarding open records requests proves to be enlightening …
Tallahassee Democrat editorial: Bloggers, pontificators have equal access to government information under open government laws …
Palm Beach Post editorial: Story examples from Post show how public records make a difference to society …
Panama City News-Herald, by Tony Bridges: Cell phone records lacking in newspaper response to public records requests …
March 6, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Associated Press, by Bill Kaczor: Florida hospitals lose court fight against patients’ right to know …
Florida Times-Union editorial: Sunshine law is strong but not absurd …
Sarasota Herald Tribune, by Anna Scott: Editors criticize limits on records before state open government panel …
Tampa Tribune editorial: Horse rules by state agency come up lame on medical history, names …
American Chronicle, by Lanny Britnell: The changing face of identity theft requires new awareness …
February 13, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Daytona Beach News-Journal editorial: Unjustified secrecy gives hospitals cover when they mess up …
Fort Myers News-Press editorial: Proposed state legislation would open up spending practices of local governments to the people …
Daytona Beach News-Journal, guest column by Barbara Petersen: Access to public records is critical to democracy …
Tampa Tribune, by Michael D. Bates: Decision coming soon on whether state attorney will pursue an inquiry into whether a Spring Hill Fire Rescue District commissioner violated the Florida Government-in-the-Sunshine Law.…
February 11, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
*Naples Daily News, by Leslie Williams: Collier judge finds Marco City council member guilty of violating public records law (*free registration required) …
Florida Times-Union, by Beth Kormanik: State attorney dismisses any notion of prosecuting a sunshine violation unless it involves kickbacks or other serious problems …
Florida Times-Union editorial: State Attorney Shorstein sends devastating signal to officials in three counties by saying he won’t prosecute open government violations …
Florida Times-Union editorial: Grand jury accepts lack of candor by Jacksonville City Council in Sunshine probe and declines to call key witnesses …
Florida Times-Union, column by Mark Woods: Grand jury probe of Jacksonville City Council Sunshine culture leaves much room for doubt …
Florida Times-Union, by columnist Mark Woods: Jacksonville City Council woman who testified before a grand jury wins praise for being more open than her colleagues …
St. Petersburg Times editorial: People have a right to know what business of theirs is being litigated in their name …
Lakeland Ledger editorial: Don’t close lawyer records as government lawyers are pitching…
January 27, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Florida Times-Union, by Mary Kelli Palka: Grand jury returns no indictments in Jacksonville City Council Sunshine probe with release of presentment pending …
Tampa
Tribune editorial: Tampa Bay Water board’s secretive vote leaves public high and dry …
*Naples Daily News: Legal defense fund set up for Marco Island city councilman accused of violating public records law by deleting public e-mails on private account (*free registration required) …
Tallahassee Democrat, by TaMaryn Waters: Fish fry raises Sunshine questions in Leon County …
Fort Myers News-Press editorial: Refresher on open meetings in Cape Coral is a good idea …
Daytona Beach News-Journal, guest column by Barbara Petersen: Access to public records critical for democracy …
January 12, 2008
Florida Sunshine Review:
Florida Times-Union, by Jim Schoettler: Florida Times-Union’s Sunshine Law probe earns top honors in North Central Florida SPJ awards …
*Naples Daily News, by Katherine Lewis: Secrecy prevailed among Collier County School Board before firing, attorney says (*free registration required) …
Florida Times-Union, by J. Taylor Rushing: Governor’s Sunshine panel marks its first year (*free registration required) …
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by Vanessa Blum: Gag order raises questions in Liberty City terror trial (*free registration required) …
*Miami Herald, by Susannah A. Nesmith: Judge issues gag order in Sean Taylor murder case (*free registration required) …
*Naples Daily News, by Liam Dillon: Marco Island city council member vows to fight charges that he broke state public records laws (*free registration required) …
December 22, 2007
Florida Sunshine Review:
Fort Myers News-Press editorial: News-Press receives $105,000 in attorneys fees relating to FEMA public records release …
*Fort Pierce Tribune, by Alexi Howk: Fort Pierce Mayor Bob Benton, two others accused of Sunshine Law violations (*free registration required) …
*Fort Pierce Tribune, by Alexi Howk:Sunshine Law allegations against Benton, others likely to be hard to prove, State Attorney’s Office says (*free registration required) …
*Naples Daily News, by Katherine Lewis: Former Collier County Schools Superintendent Ray Baker’s Sunshine Law lawsuit heads to court (*free registration required) …
December 18, 2007
Records home for the holidays:
Florida State University coaching contract: Scott Carter of The Tampa Tribune on the $2.5 million contract of Florida State University assistant football coach Jimbo Fisher, who would have to pay $2.5 million to take another coaching job or receive $2.5 million if he remains at FSU and isn’t offered the head coaching job by Jan. 9, 2011 ...
Ticket distribution records, invoices, guest lists: Beth Kormanik of The Florida Times-Union about how spotty record-keeping makes it hard to peg who is benefitting from the mayor and Jacksonville City Council’s use of taxpayer financed perks …
E-mails: S.V. Date of the Palm Beach Post on efforts by former top aide of Gov. Jeb Bush to undo court rulings that found vouchers unconstitutional …
Court records: Henry Pierson Curtis of the Orlando Sentinel about how Orange County Sheriff’s deputies were surprised to learn a man they arrested on gun and drug charges had obtained a state concealed weapons license despite having two prior drug convictions...
December 17, 2007
Florida Sunshine Review:
Tampa Tribune editorial: Gov. Crist shouldn’t let CSX Railroad derail open government …
St. Petersburg Times, by Shannon Colavecchio-Van Sickler: University of Florida clash pits free speech against faith …
Tampa Tribune editorial: Suppressing speech on campus hurts University of Florida’s prestige …
December 16, 2007
Florida child deaths skyrocket: Government reports can chronicle disturbing trends. A preliminary draft report from the Florida Child Death Review Committee reviewed by Rachel Myers of the Fort Myers News-Press indicates the “number of Florida children who died after suffering some form of abuse or neglect spiked 80 percent from 2005 to 2006." That translates into 170 children dead from verified abuse and neglect, up from 95 deaths the year before. Officials said part of the reason for the higher numbers is a change toward more accurate reporting. For instance, swimming pool deaths weren’t considered child abuse before but are now being factored in the statistics. A box with more statistics from the draft report accompanies the story.
December 15, 2007
Records in the round:
NASA e-mails: The Associated Press on NASA’s release of some saucy e-mails among more than 200 pages of messages relating to the criminal case against former astronaut Lisa Nowak and also involving astronaut William Oefelein and Air Force Capt. Colleen Shipman …
Divorce records, police reports, school records: Stephen Thompson, Mike Wells and Mark Douglas of The Tampa Tribune/News Channel 8 on the slayings of two adults and two children and the father suspected of the killings who apparently shot himself …
Civic association letter: William Cooper Jr. of the Palm Beach Post about the Singer Island Civic Association writing State Rep. Carl Domino asking for the state to take over Riviera Beach city government ...
December 14, 2007
Records in the spotlight:
Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigative records: Lisa J. Huriash of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on former Parkland Mayor Robert Marks receiving almost $157,000 over four years from his business ties with the city's largest developer …
Grand jury report, police reports, court documents: Pat Gillespie of the Fort Myers News-Press about the defendants in the shooting death of NFL star Sean Taylor in Miami ...
Audit: Mark Hollis of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on an audit that gives the Palm Beach County Convention and Visitors Bureaus mixed reviews on how it accounts for millions of dollars a year…
Indictments: John W. Allman and Elaine Silvestrini of The Tampa Tribune on 13 indictments in a Tampa housing fraud scheme, including a former Hillsborough County sheriff’s corporal and a former University of Florida football standout …
December 13, 2007
Florida Sunshine Review:
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by Andy Reid: Everglades cleanup could dodge public records laws …
Palm Beach Post editorial:Curb SLAPP court harrassment of development critics …
Gainesville Sun, by Jack Stripling: State Attorney General Bill McCollum blasts University of Florida over free speech …
Tallahassee Democrat, by Bill Cotterell: Public records access takes leap into 21st century …
Tampa Bay Newspapers Beach Beacon, by Bob McClure: Former Reddington Beach Town commissioner Sam Maniotes awarded fees after winning a public records-related lawsuit against the city …
December 11, 2007
TiCo Air chairman: No response needed: Great to see more newspapers presenting public records in new ways to report stories. Sarah Okeson of Florida Today uses audio tapes and auditing records for this story about the chairman of the Titusville-Cocoa Airport Authority saying he didn’t plan to speak to a state investigator looking into authority spending and suggesting other board members do the same. The inspector general of the Florida Department of Transportation is investigating the authority after an audit found “that just $6,329 of a $1.7 million grant had been properly spent under plans to build a new terminal at Space Coast Regional Airport." The terminal has yet to be built, and audio tapes from an authority board meeting last month reveal chairman Jerry Sansom telling the board he didn’t plan to speak to an investigator from the FDOT. The story includes links to four related audio clips from that meeting, such as this one.
December 10, 2007
Florida Sunshine Review:
Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial: State, google will make public records easier to find …
Daytona Beach News-Journal, by Mark Harper: Freedom of speech limited at University of Central Florida …
December 9, 2007
On the records radar:
State Board of Administration statistics: David DeCamp of the St. Petersburg Times on Pasco County impacts of having money tied up in a state-run investment pool that’s been in turmoil …
Lease documents: Matt Galnor of The Florida Times-Union about how more than half of the 70 associations and nonprofits coordinating activities out of Jacksonville recreation centers and parks are doing so without a required lease ...
Florida Auditor General’s audit: Angeline J. Taylor of the Tallahassee Democrat about Florida A&M University’s first positive audit in three years …
U.S. County criminal, jail records: *Henry Pierson Curtis of the Orlando Sentinel reveals that a man shot by an Orlando cop in Rosemont had been arrested by the same cop twice in the last year on charges of drug dealing and loitering (*free registration required)…
Civil lawsuit: Susannah Bryan of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel about a college student filing an invasion of privacy lawsuit against her former landlord, accusing him of having a hidden camera installed in her bedroom and spying on her ...
December 8, 2007
Florida Sunshine Review:
Tampa Bay 10, by Mike Deeson: Sunshine violation may have occurred at Devil Rays news conference …
Bradenton Herald, by Nicholas Azzara: Activist from First Amendment Foundation shines light on state Sunshine Law …
Palm Beach Post, by Larry Keller: Taunts prompt conservative columnist Ann Coulter to get address of her Palm Beach home removed from property appraiser’s records …
Palatka Daily News: Palatka city commissioners reverse stand, allow reporters in interviews …
DeLand-Deltona Beacon, by Pat Hatfield: DebaryPOP Web site by bloggers turned elected city officials will continue …
Naples Daily News editorial: State Attorney’s Office decision to file non-criminal charge of violating state’s open records law against Marco Island City Council member sends important message…
Palm Beach Post editorial: Crist opens up Florida with open government moves, including executive order on Open Government Bill of Rights …
Computerworld, by Linda Rosencrance: State of Florida, Google team up to make it easier to access government Web sites …
Lakeland Ledger editorial: Florida, Google deal should help untangle Florida’s Web …
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