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FOIA Friday: Pursuits for UVA shooting report, Richmond records continue • Virginia Mercury [1]

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Date: 2024-08-30

One of the less noticed features of the Virginia Way is the long-running tendency of the commonwealth’s leaders to conduct their decision-making behind closed doors. While the Virginia Freedom of Information Act presumes all government business is by default public and requires officials to justify why exceptions should be made, too many Virginia leaders in practice take the opposite stance, acting as if records are by default private and the public must prove they should be handled otherwise.

In this feature, we aim to highlight the frequency with which officials around Virginia are resisting public access to records on issues large and small — and note instances when the release of information under FOIA gave the public insight into how government bodies are operating.

Daily Progress challenging decision to withhold report on UVA shooting

The Daily Progress is continuing to fight for the University of Virginia to release a report on the December 2022 shooting that killed three football players, which the school has withheld since last year .

The paper filed a challenge with the Virginia Court of Appeals last week over the July 18 decision by Judge Melvin Hughes to not release the report in response to the newspaper’s FOIA request because the document had become part of the criminal investigation into 24-year-old former UVa student Christopher Darnell Jones. On Nov. 13, 2022, Jones shot Lavel Davis Jr., Devin Chandler and D’Sean Perry to death, and two other students who were injured.

In June, Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley intervened in the trial over the FOIA request for the report, saying he had given the report to UVa Police Chief Tim Longo, making it part of the criminal investigation into Jones. Active criminal investigation files are exempt from FOIA releases.

But, in its article detailing the latest appeal, the Daily Progress notes the school didn’t introduce any evidence on the matter during the trial, and never brought up Hingeley’s argument that the report was part of the criminal proceeding.

“We are undeterred,” said Daily Progress editor Reynolds Hutchins. “We have every respect for the court, but we believe the judge erred in permitting the Albemarle County commonwealth’s attorney to intervene in our case, ending proceedings before even closing arguments could proceed. Virginia taxpayers paid more than a million dollars for this report last year and three families paid an incalculable price in 2022, they all deserve to know what happened.”

Jones is scheduled to face a jury trial in January. He has been granted access to the report.

The Mercury’s efforts to track FOIA and other transparency cases in Virginia are indebted to the work of the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, a nonprofit alliance dedicated to expanding access to government records, meetings and other state and local proceedings.

Richmond’s resistance to releasing records

As of Aug. 26, a month after the Richmond Times-Dispatch requested receipts and meal purchase forms for certain meal charges made to a former employee’s credit card, the newspaper in Virginia’s capital city still had not received them.

Virginia FOIA law mandates officials respond to public record requests within five workdays, excluding holidays and weekends. Officials can also obtain a seven-day extension, if it’s “not practically possible” to complete the request in five workdays.

The meal records request update came to light in an article by reporter Samuel Parker explaining procedures outlined in FOIA law, including response deadlines and request costs. The city has missed the deadlines in several instances, and interpreted their allowance to recover costs for time spent on recovering documents to be $1,725.18 in one case. In another request, the city said the cost for a single email already provided to a private investigator for a separate request was $75.25.

The Times-Dispatch has continuously reported on financial records of city employees following the discovery of department charge cards being used for questionable reasons. On Thursday, the paper published a story about an ex-spokesperson spending nearly $8,000 for training in England.

City officials said they are working to increase staffing and technology to streamline the FOIA process.

Spotsylvania schools staying silent on swim team investigation

Spotsylvania County Public Schools representatives are staying mum on an investigation into issues with the Riverbend High School swim team, according to the Fredericksburg Advance.

As the Advance previously reported, the issues involved a late November decision to create smaller instructional groups among the swim team led by captains because of its 45-member size, as well as a parent’s allegations that a former assistant coach communicated inappropriately with their child.

The decision to create the smaller groups outraged the parent, who characterized students being chosen to lead the smaller groups as “like a participation trophy.” That parent then alleged then-assistant coach Theodore Marcus was inappropriately texting with their child, after praising him as a role model for months and giving him the child’s phone number, according to the Fredericksburg Advance.

Other parents said the organization of the team created a more inclusive environment, and staff said it could foster leadership skills among those chosen to direct the smaller groups.

After the controversy, Marcus resigned. Following a “contentious” meeting on December 20, school principal Xavier Downs and coach Rachael Adriani were put on administrative leave. The school began an investigation on the issues surrounding the team in March.

Under FOIA, the Fredericksburg Advance had requested from the school district the report from the investigation. But the district said the records were exempt from mandatory disclosure after previously telling the outlet “the Division does not have a statement to share regarding this matter,” when asked about the status of the investigation.

The Fredericksburg Advance’s review of online financial information for the district found almost $40,000 had been paid to attorney Yeng Collins by June 21 for work on “division investigation.”

“Payments to law firms besides Sands Anderson, which provides general legal advice to the School Board and represents the division in special education matters, have continued throughout the summer and now approach $500,000 for the calendar year,” the Advance reported.

Arlington County police expand public access to crime data

The Arlington County Police Department unveiled a new crime data hub available online, according to WTOP news.

The website provides maps, information on offenses and arrest data within Arlington County, with updates issued weekly on Wednesday mornings. Information comes from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Incident-Based Reporting System.

Several groups in the community evaluated the website before it went online, WTOP reported. The Virginia State Policy has a similar online database of crime reported annually in Virginia.

Have you experienced local or state officials denying or delaying your FOIA request? Tell us about it: [email protected].

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[1] Url: https://virginiamercury.com/2024/08/30/foia-friday-pursuits-for-uva-shooting-report-richmond-records-continue/

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