Notes, observations and suggestions on transparency and accountability in New Jersey local government.
Update: The Township released the video shortly after this blog post was published. The video is on-line here.————————————On October 1, 2019, New Jersey Superior Court Assignment Judge Yolanda Ciccone issued a court order compelling Independence Township (Warren County) to disclose “the [police] dashcam audio and video recordings of” a motor vehicle stop of Keith P. […]
The takeaways from today’s two-judge Appellate Division panel’s Open Public Records Act (OPRA) opinion in Jeff Carter v. Franklin Fire District No. 1 are: 1. If you’re an OPRA requestor who wants e-mails in their native format, you need to specifically request them in their native or original format. Don’t conflate the terms “medium” and […]
In his August 2, 2018 article, “Why did Rutgers pay fired AD Julie Hermann $500K more than she was owed?” Star-Ledger reporter Keith Sargeant wrote about Rutgers’ refusal to provide him with the university’s separation agreement with former Athletic Director Julie Hermann. After reading the article, I had my non-profit submit an Open Public Records […]
If a person submits an Open Public Records Act (OPRA) request to a county prosecutor for records that the prosecutor filed in court, it is generally accepted that those records must be disclosed provided that the court case is not sealed. Yet, on November 5, 2018 the non-profit I serve as executive director filed suit […]
On Wednesday, January 9, 2019, Mercer County Assignment Judge Mary C. Jacobson will hear John Paff v. Trenton Board of Education, Docket No. MER-L-2241-18. At issue is whether the Board’s vote to give Superintendent Fred McDowell a $25,000 bonus should be voided out because the vote was taken after the Board’s September 24, 2018 meeting […]