These actions and the issue it raises are of great concern to the public given what we have learned, especially in this case thus far, that access to public records is vital to obtaining justice. It is also, I believe, essential to holding officials to account -- and one of the key questions of controversy in this case is not the outcome of the Zimmerman trail but the explanation of the actions of the Police Department and local State Attorney in setting Zimmerman free. Public records are necessary to hold government and its officials to account.
It is therefore of great concern, regardless of how
professionally she may be handling the prosecution, that the outside State
Attorney has already been responsible for the failure of the Sanford Police
Department to respond to pubic records request and to provide the relevant
records.
I know that if and when the attorneys present a motion to the Court to try and "seal the public record" that there will be a large number of prominent entities who will formally object and seek to protect the law. In the meantime, however, with regard to my requests and shown in things like the unexplainable redaction this afternoon, there are ongoing violations that should be raising a great concern among the public. With those current violations of the Public Records Law I am prepared to go to the Courts to obtain enforcement of the law.
It would be another travesty if the success of the "Justice
for Trayvon" movement in getting Zimmerman into court came only at the expense
of the famed Sunshine Law of Florida. In particular the right of the public
to access government -- or "public" -- records and to be able to thereby hold to account those institutions and actors who were responsible for the earlier
injustices. These issues, as well, are among those which the "Justice for Trayvon" movement has been focused.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
3
2
2
