AL Sherrifs Risk Being Sued After Violating Public Records Act

Alabama sheriffs need to respond to a request for documents on jail food allowances or risk being sued for violating the state's public-records law.

The case of county sheriffs and the money they pocket after feeding inmates just keeps getting curiouser and curiouser.

Last week, The Decatur Daily reported on a letter stamped "confidential" from Bobby Timmons, executive director of the Alabama Sheriffs Association, to county sheriffs around the state. Sheriffs had received a letter dated Jan. 29 from the Southern Center for Human Rights asking them for public records that would show how much money sheriffs had received in food allowances, how much they had spent feeding prisoners and how much they had left over for the years 2004 through 2008.

Read more here.

County Council Takes Action on Public Records Policy

On Monday, the City Council passed a resolution establishing a written public records policy for the city.

“We needed one so that everyone would know what we require,” said City Clerk Lisa Hanks. “The resolution was because we don’t currently have a written policy.”

Early last year, Mayor Tim Kant verbally changed the existing written policy following newspaper articles describing the difficulty and high cost of obtaining some city and police department records.

Read the rest of the story at BaldwinCountyNOW.com

Judge to Rule on Public Record Pertaining to Ozark Teacher

A Dale County judge may be the first in the state to rule on whether parts of a teacher’s personnel file are public record.

The Dothan Eagle submitted two public records requests to former Ozark City Schools superintendent Dan Payant for disciplinary action taken against D.A. Smith Middle School teacher Melinda Fenn, who disclosed a student’s medical disability to other students last school year. Fenn has taught in the school system for 18 years.

The student’s mother said her child underwent counseling and was temporarily transferred to another school system because of embarrassment.

http://www.dothaneagle.com/gulfcoasteast/dea/local_news.apx.-content-articles-DEA-2008-02-06-0006.html