Two weeks ago, I received a rather “spirited” call from Camp Verde Town Councilwoman Robin Whatley, who took issue with our Jan. 20 story involving a civil lawsuit filed against town officials.
Almost all court records, lawsuits and filings are public record the moment they are filed unless they are sealed by the court or are excluded as “confidential.” The lawsuit V-1300-CV-201580390 has been on file with Yavapai Superior Court since Dec. 24
[Click here to visit the state of Arizona’s public court record filing website]
Any citizen can visit any court or government, look at lawsuits and records, make copies and share them. Many of these records are available online as well, especially in bigger jurisdictions.
What became immediately apparent in our conversation is that Whatley apparently doesn’t understand what a “public record” is. Had Whatley been a private citizen, such a misunderstanding could have been chalked up to ignorance about American democracy, but as an elected public official, her lack of understanding of this basic tenet of how our republic must be open and transparent to function should send a chill up the spine of not only her fellow Camp Verde Town Council members but instill a modicum of fear in every constituent in the town.
Whatley demanded to know why we published the story.
Answers:
- It’s a public record.
- Local officials were named in the lawsuit.
- Public money — your money, fellow taxpayers — will be used to pay defense attorneys.
Whatley demanded to know why we included details from the case.
Answers:
- It’s in the public record.
- Taxpayers have a right to know what their officials are accused of in lawsuits.
- Anyone who chooses to can obtain the document and read the same details we reported. As always, we were careful to use “alleges” and “claims” to indicate to readers that details were simply the plaintiff’s allegations.
Whatley demanded to know if we contacted Town Manager Russ Martin, who was listed as a defendant.
Answer:
- In the seventh paragraph on Page 1A, we wrote that we called Martin, who said he was unaware of the lawsuit, which has been filed with the court on Dec. 24, almost a full month earlier.
Does the court case have merit? Is the plaintiff in the right or wrong? Are any or all or none of the named defendants at fault? That’s not up for any newspaper to decide — that’s a matter for the court, and still does not change the fact that lawsuit remains a public record.
If it was up to a newspaper to decide right and wrong that would make journalists judges and we could all wear judicial robes to work. While I would appreciate the simplicity of my new wardrobe, we will instead rely on lawyers to argue the case before judges.
We strongly encourage Whatley and other officials to review the Arizona Public Records Law from the Arizona Ombudsman’s Office, as well as Arizona Supreme Court’s “Public Access to the Judicial Records of the State of Arizona,” both available online.
As a newspaper, one of our primary duties is to publish such records like public notices, government budgets and police reports, and also details about school superintendents’ contracts as well actions of elected officials and public officers at public meetings.
To demand that a newspaper not publish a public record because an elected official personally disagrees is an attempt to silence the public’s right to know. An attack on the openness and transparency of government is an assault on democracy itself.
Christopher Fox Graham
Managing Editor
