Open Government Investigations. St. Augustine.

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• published: 01 Aug 2015
• views: 8718

This is a citizen Open Government Investigation. The Citizen Open Government investigation crew visited multiple Florida Department Of Corrections Probation and Parole Offices in three different North East Florida Circuits to make a simple public records request. For consistency, we requested the same documents at each Probation and Parole Office… The Offender Sign In Log. Please note, at all of the offices the offender sign in log was sitting on the counter, in plain sight, out in the public lobby area. By requesting the offender sign in log we are intentionally making it as easy as possible for agencies to comply, due to the fact that the document is easily accessible and requires no redactions. All that is required of the agency is the most basic knowledge of Florida’s Public Records Law and to simply allow us to inspect and photograph the offender sign in log. As you will see in the following series of videos, despite the same documents being requested from the same state agency (The Florida Department Of Corrections) the results varied greatly. Stay cool, Be polite, Assert Your Rights, and Always Film The Police. I am not an attorney. Please seek legal advice from a licensed attorney. The views expressed in the comments section are not necessarily those of Jeff Gray. I do not support comments that libel the persons appearing in my videos. I do not support racists comments or comments that call for acts of violence or otherwise unlawful activity. Comments on this website are the sole responsibility of their writers and the writer will take full responsibility, liability, and blame for any libel or litigation that results from something written in or as a direct result of something written in a comment. Please comply with YouTube's already established terms of use policy. Continuing our audit of government entities on their accessibility to the public for the submission of a public records request, and for their compliance with public record law. What does the Public Records Law provide? A. This law states that "all documents ... regardless of the physical form, characteristics, or means of transmission, made or received pursuant to law or ... in connection with the transaction of official business by any agency" is a public record. The Florida Supreme Court has interpreted this definition to encompass all materials made or received by an agency in connection with official business which are used to perpetuate, communicate or formalize knowledge WHO CAN REQUEST PUBLIC RECORDS? Florida State Law requires that all public records (unless exempt) be open for personal inspection by anyone [Ch. 119.01(1), F.S.]. Florida State Law requires that all public records (unless exempt) be open for personal inspection by anyone [Ch. 119.01(1), F.S.]. The Public Records Act requires no showing of purpose or "special interest" as a condition of access to public records. Unless authorized by law, an agency may not ask the requestor to produce identification as a condition to providing public records. Nothing in Chapter 119, Florida Statutes, requires that a requesting party make a demand for public records in person or in writing. Section 119.07(1)(a), Florida Statutes, provides that "[e]very person who has custody of a public record shall permit the record to be inspected and copied by any person desiring to do so, at any reasonable time, under reasonable conditions, and under supervision by the custodian of public records or the custodian's designee." The public records act does not contain a specific time limit ( such as 24 hours or ten days ) for compliance with public records request. The Florida Supreme Court has stated that the only delay in producing records permitted under chapter 119, Florida Statues, is the reasonable time allowed the custodian to retrieve the record and delete those portions of the record the custodian asserts are exempt