Kansas must make more parolee records available
By The Associated Press
07.12.02
TOPEKA, Kan. — The Department of Corrections must make more records about parolees available to the public, the state's highest court ruled today.
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court sided with The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle in a three-year legal battle with the department.
The court ruled the department attempted to withhold too many records related to supervision histories of former inmates. It said most must be available to the public.
In a broader statement, the justices also said government attorneys cannot claim some records are a "work product" in preparation for litigation. They said that exception does not apply "where litigation would not reasonably be anticipated under an objective standard."
The decision is viewed as the court's most comprehensive review of the Kansas Open Records Act since it became law in 1984.
"For us, this has always been a matter of public safety," said Rick Thames, the Eagle's editor. "It's great."
A spokesman for the corrections department was not immediately available for comment.
In 1999, the Eagle sought the names of parolees charged with murder or manslaughter from 1996 to 1999, as well as information about the crimes. The newspaper also sought records from internal department panels that reviewed serious incidents involving parolees, as well as the names of panel members.
The department provided some records but refused to turn over others it deemed part of the parolees' supervision histories. That refusal triggered the lawsuit.
The agency argued that Kansas law specifically prohibited it from disclosing any information from parolees' supervision histories. The Eagle maintained the open-records law mandated the information be made public.
The court said the only information the department is not required to make public are the personal notes and opinions of parole officers. It said information related to criminal charges pending against parolees must be available for public review.
"This is probably the most comprehensive review of the Open Records Act since it was enacted," court spokesman Ron Keefover said. "It really sets a precedent for open government in Kansas."
The department had prevailed in Shawnee County District Court, where Judge Eric Rosen dismissed the lawsuit. But the justices returned the case to Rosen with instructions to issue an order to the department "consistent with this opinion."
The Eagle argued it wanted access to all information available to the public and said the law didn't allow the department to turn over only part of the information.
The newspaper also said Kansans have a right to be safe from criminals, and that interest outstrips any privacy right for inmates.
"The people of Kansas have always depended upon the Department of Corrections to make wise decisions," Thames said.
But the department argued the law preventing it from releasing information from a parolee's supervision histories was clear. It argued the newspaper could find much of the information from other sources, including district court records and law enforcement officials.
But the Eagle noted that it would be difficult to obtain the records from local officials, given that Kansas has 105 counties and hundreds of cities.
"As a practical matter, they were not available somewhere else," Thames said. "These were records that are scattered throughout the state."
In the court's opinion, Justice Bob Abbott wrote that the law on supervision histories and the Open Records Act could be in harmony with the court's narrow definition of supervision history in the ruling.
In addition, the court said, the fact that records are available from another source does not allow an agency to refuse to grant access to its records.