New England First Amendment Coalition |
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The New England First Amendment Coalition is continuing its series on state open meeting laws with new classes on public commentary.
The classes feature a local attorney who will explain their respective state law on public comments during open meetings. Each class will address common challenges to the public’s right to speak at open meetings and will help clarify when and how government officials can restrict the speech of those in attendance. [...]
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Rhode Island
Massachusetts
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“Changes to the current court rules should make clear that any hearing that would otherwise be in-person and open to the public shall also be accessible to all members of the public remotely,” NEFAC wrote in a Feb. 13 letter. “There should be no difference between the access courts provide the public in-person and what they provide online.”
The coalition’s comments were in response to proposed revisions to Vermont Rule of Civil Procedure 43.1. The revisions only addressed remote and hybrid access for litigants and members of the court. Additional changes are needed to provide similar access to all members of the public, particularly the many journalists covering the court system, NEFAC explained. [...]
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The New England First Amendment Coalition recently argued for immediate public access to civil complaints filed in Virginia, emphasizing open government principles that apply to courts across the country.
“A well-functioning democracy requires a public that is knowledgeable and informed about the workings of the judicial branch,” explained NEFAC and other advocates in a Feb. 10 amicus brief. “Court records are the most valuable and direct sources of reliable information for journalists reporting on criminal matters and civil lawsuits.” [...]
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The fair report privilege is a state-law defense to libel actions when journalists report on or republish defamatory statements made by government.
By viewing this lesson, you’ll learn (1) how the fair report privilege works (2) where to find out if your state has a fair reporting privilege and, if so, its scope of protection and (3) good practices you can begin now to make your reporting more likely covered by the privilege.
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STUDENT PRESS FREEDOM DAY
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To celebrate the fifth annual Student Press Freedom Day earlier this month, the New England First Amendment Coalition produced a video featuring two former student newspaper editors who encountered censorship at Burlington (Vt.) High School in 2018.
NEFAC and its partners — Student Press Law Center, New England Newspaper & Press Association and SPJ New England — also called on other student journalists to share their own stories to celebrate the occasion. [...]
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FIRST AMENDMENT AND THE FREE PRESS
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NEFAC recently visited Boston University and will soon be presenting at Wayland (Mass.) High School, Roger Williams University and the University of Massachusetts. The coalition provides educators a variety of resources to incorporate into their classroom lessons each academic year. The materials and services we offer address a range of First Amendment topics, journalism skills and freedom of information laws. [...]
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NEFAC President Gregory V. Sullivan met with Egyptian diplomats earlier this month to discuss the First Amendment and freedom of information laws in the United States. The presentation is part of a U.S. Department of State-funded civics program coordinated by WorldBoston, a local non-profit organization. [...]
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NEFAC Executive Director Justin Silverman recently spoke to Yasmin Amer at WBUR’s Radio Boston about the state’s public records law. Massachusetts is just one of two states that arguably exempts the governor’s office. Silverman joined WBUR investigative reporters Todd Wallack and Beth Healy on the program. [...]
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Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment coalition, wasn’t sure what to make of Healey’s new policy. “Governor Healey said her office would follow the public records law and that’s the expectation. There is no ‘unique obligations’ exemption in the law and claiming one now seems like an attempt to walk back the promise she made,” he said. [...]
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Justin Silverman, the executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition, thinks the DA numbers may actually be understating the problem. “While these numbers are concerning, the amount of requests that go ignored is likely even higher,” Silverman says. “Not all cases are appealed. Not all requesters dig in and fight for the information they need. I fear what’s represented here is only part of the story.” [...]
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The legislation, submitted in the Senate by Sen. Lou DiPalma and Rep. Joe Solomon in the House, was crafted with the help of several open government groups that make up Access Rhode Island, including the New England First Amendment Coalition, Common Cause Rhode Island, R.I. Press Association and R.I. League of Women Voters.
“It’s time to bring more transparency to Rhode Island,” said Justin Silverman, the executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition. “This bill includes reasonable, common-sense changes to the Access to Public Records Act that will help keep us better informed about our government.” [...]
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Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition, said the argument that releasing certain information would “unreasonably hinder” Healey is one her attorneys “alone have created.”
“When she responds to a public records request and she is citing exemptions that don’t exist under the law, then it really calls into question that commitment to transparency that she is so publicly making,” he said. “She’s both saying she’s going to follow the law — and then she says there might be other obligations that require her to not follow the law. And she can’t have it both ways.” [...]
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“It would be very hard to argue that this is not a public meeting when they are giving public notice of the meeting,” said Justin Silverman, executive director of NEFAC. “It seems like an effort to skirt the open meeting law,” he said. “It seems like a way for the City Council to have meetings while the public has limited access and free to have a quorum or not, doing city business or not, and expecting all New Bedford residents to just take their word for what happens.” [...]
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MORE FOI & FIRST AMENDMENT NEWS
Connecticut
Bridgeport, Public Records
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Maine
Massachusetts
Governor's Office, Public Records
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New Hampshire
Art, Commercial Speech
Police Misconduct Records
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Rhode Island
FOI Law Reform
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Vermont
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Thank You to Our Supporters |
NEFAC appreciates the support of all its donors and volunteers. In particular, we would like to thank the following Leadership Circle donors ($10,000+) and Major Supporters ($2,500-$9,999) for their contributions:
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LEADERSHIP CIRCLE
Rhode Island Foundation
Hearst Conn. Media Group
The Boston Globe
Paul and Ann Sagan
The Robertson Foundation
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MAJOR SUPPORTERS
Boston University
WBUR-Boston
Academy of New England Journalists
SPJ Foundation
Genie Gannett for the First Amendment Museum
Linda Pizzuti Henry
Champa Charitable Foundation Fund
Connecticut Public
GBH-Boston
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