New rules on court records often ignored: Some old habits are apparently hard to break. A review of court record sealing orders by Patrick Danner and Dan Christensen of the Miami Herald indicates some judges in Miami-Dade and Broward counties aren’t following tough new Supreme Court rules geared to curb the wrongful sealing of court records. “A review of sealing orders shows judges often are failing to comply with some of the new law's key requirements, such as specifying in writing the grounds for sealing court records, or including findings that the secrecy was no broader than necessary,” the story says. Since the court’s ruling on April 5, eight of 10 Broward orders and four of six sealing orders in Miami-Dade do not meet the new requirements. Those cases include the divorce of a well-known Broward homicide prosecutor and a defamation suit against a Miami doctor. The state Supreme Court adopted the rules after the Herald uncovered hundreds of civil and criminal cases hidden from public view in at least a half dozen counties. One key issue here is that there appears to be no penalty for judges who do not follow the rules, which are designed to make it possible for the public to know in case anyone wants to challenge a sealing. This story includes three PDFs of sealing orders showing how the rules have not been followed.

Records in the headlights:
School superintendent letter to school board member: Tia Mitchell of The Florida Times-Union on the furor stemming from Duval County School Superintendent Joey Wise’s letter calling for School Board member Brenda Priestly Jackson to resign …
Circuit court docket, court files: *Evan S. Benn of the Miami Herald about the years of turmoil that followed a wife’s decision not to tell her spouse about winning a $28.5 million Lotto jackpot (*free registration required) …
U.S. Census records, circuit court clerk statistics, Florida Bar records: Natalie Neysa Alund of the Bradenton Herald on the growth of the Latino population in Manatee County and the need for related legal services to go with it …
Florida Department of Environmental Protection inspection records: Pedro Morales and Jess Fisher for the Fort Myers News-Press on poor inspection reports regarding four private sewer plants serving about 1,250 homes ...
Florida Senate legislative bill: Bill Cotterell of Florida Today about a proposed bill in the Legislature that would require criminal background checks on volunteer youth coaches in Florida ...

Florida Sunshine Review:
St. Petersburg Times, by Lorri Hefland: Largo City Commission candidate who advocates more transparency at city hall kept sealed from the public an arrest that resulted in probation two decades ago …
Bradenton Herald, by Robert Napper: Ellenton man working as a cleaner stole personal information from a Sarasota doctor’s office…
Florida Times-Union editorial: Legislature should play by the same open government rules it imposes on local governments …

October 2, 2007

Florida Sunshine Review:
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by Denise-Marie Balona: Experts say Deltona talk on sex-offender rule probably defied state open meetings laws…
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, by John Kennedy and Aaron Deslatte: Secrecy ushers in Legislature’s special session …
Miami Herald staff report: Miami Herald’s Christensen, Danner win win annual Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information award …

October 1, 2007

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Poverty Peddlers: Projects produce few jobs: Court files, annual reports, spending records are among the documents tapped by Scott Hiaasen and Jason Grotto of the Miami Herald to show how the Miami-Dade Empowerment Trust “squandered millions of tax dollars on risky ventures, bad loans and insider deals - in many cases without creating a single job.” The newspaper reviewed 164 trust projects intended to aid businesses but found that $9.2 million went to failed companies and questionable deals and projects that produced no jobs. In addition, “The agency paid for a series of lavish block parties. It bankrolled a wannabe pop singer and a group of aspiring hip-hop producers. It purchased eight large fiberglass roosters,” the story said. The second day of the Herald’s presentation found “that while the agency was receiving millions in tax dollars, it falsely reported the number of jobs it fostered for the poor – claiming hundreds of new positions when no such jobs existed – in violation of federal rules.” This strong effort by the Herald – which involves more than a year’s work – includes links to several other pieces of this multimedia story.