Transparency News 1/16/14

A federal court shut out the public Wednesday for a hearing in the embezzlement case against a former assistant to a member of the Dave Matthews Band. Last July, Getty Rothenberg admitted he inflated invoices and stole the extra money from violinist Boyd Tinsley. Court documents show the closed hearing was a request to seal information to protect privacy rights of people involved in the case.
NBC29

As members of the Virginia General Assembly convene for the first time since last February, legislators are stampeding to introduce ethics legislation in response to the gift scandal which engulfed then Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R). Following the principle cited by Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis that "Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants," state Sen. Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax) hasintroduced an ethics reform package which he says "makes the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) a centerpiece."Petersen said his proposals differed significantly from the House bill. "I’m not overly impressed by the ‘bipartisan compromise’ announced in the House this week. My package has teeth. My intention is to change the culture, not just close the loopholes," Petersen said in an interview on Wednesday, Jan. 8. "The other issue that’s part of my proposal is making FOIA the centerpiece," Petersen said. "I think my FOIA bill is critical for bringing more transparency to this process. That’s a huge difference, because without that it’s really hard to know what’s going on and it’s for people and the media to investigate."
Connection Newspapers

A Senate race that could determine the balance of the Virginia Senate is headed to a recount. Republican businessman Wayne Coleman is expected to petition for the recount today. His campaign manager, Austin Chambers, said the petition would be filed on the Eastern Shore.
Times-Dispatch

Former Virginia governor Robert F. McDonnell received nearly $28,000 in personal gifts last year, including a trip to Miami costing more than $16,000 and tickets worth $4,725 to college football’s national championship game held in that city. The gifts were included in McDonnell’s final financial disclosure form, filed Wednesday, four days after the governor left office.
Washington Post

The Mayor of Hillsville was found guilty last week of impersonating a law-enforcement officer. Gregory Nelson Crowder was sentenced in Bristol General District Court to 90 days in jail with all but 30 suspended, and a $500 fine, according to online records. He was released on recognizance and has appealed the verdict. Crowder’s wife, Rebecca Louanne Crowder, was acquitted of the same charge. Both charges stem from a March 14 incident in which the Crowders were accused of pretending to be agents with the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
Roanoke Times

The 2014 United States Cyber Crime Conference will take place at the National Conference Center in Lansdowne this year. Visit Loudoun estimated the economic impact of the event could be nearly $230,000. The Cyber Crime Conference expects more than 1,000 guests from law enforcement, criminal and civil law, forensic examiners, government and private sector IT professionals, academia, and other international partners between April 25 and May 3. According to the event's website, "This is the only event of its kind that provides both hands-on digital forensics training and an interactive forum for cyber professionals to network."
Loudoun Times-Mirror

National Stories

A federal judge on Wednesday ordered Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer’s office to turn over some internal documents about its policy of denying drivers’ licenses to people who were brought into the country illegally as children but allowed to stay under a new federal program. The state at first denied the licenses to people who were brought to the country illegally, but in September expanded it to include all people who were given deportation deferrals. Immigrant-rights activists sued to block the policy, arguing it was unconstitutional. Activist groups asked U.S. District Judge David Campbell to order Brewer’s staff and the Arizona Department of Transportation to produce documents leading up to the policy and its later changes. Brewer’s lawyers argued that the internal memos and e-mails are protected by law.
Arizona Central

The latest attempt to restrict public access to a popular online court records database is being circulated in the Wisconsin Legislature. Rep. Mary Czaja, of Irma, and Sen. Glenn Grothman, of West Bend, are circulating a bill that would remove cases from the database in which charges were dismissed, the person was found not guilty or the case was overturned on appeal. Similar proposals have drawn widespread opposition from users of the database, including media groups, landlords, and the state court system.
Channel 3000

Using a grant from the National Freedom of Information Coalition(NFOIC), Cindy Ference, a tenant in a King County Housing Authority complex in Shoreline, WA took on the housing authority in a lawsuit last year alleging violations of the Open Public Meetings Act and Public Records Act. Her successful 2013 lawsuit exposed a now-abolished practice of using a private non-profit board to conduct public Housing Authority business.  Ms. Ference and the Housing Authority settled the open-meeting claims last summer, initiating the first round of reforms, including earlier and more detailed notice of Housing Authority board meetings, posting agendas online, and posting adopted resolutions online in a searchable format. The new settlement resolves the remaining claims under the Public Records Act, and brings the case to a final conclusion.
NFOIC
 

Editorials/Columns

Cavalier Daily: Nine years after he left the University, former environmental science professor Michael Mann’s emails are still a topic of debate in Charlottesville—and Richmond. Last Thursday, for the second time in as many years, lawyers for the University of Virginia found themselves in front of the Virginia Supreme Court arguing about the level of privacy to which academics at state-run institutions are entitled, with Mann at the center of the case. The U.S. Supreme Court has faced criticism for its abiding refusal to permit video coverage of court proceedings. But at least the country’s highest judicial body provides both audio recordings and transcripts of arguments. By contrast, members of the public interested in the Virginia Supreme Court proceedings have to either trek to Richmond or hope a news outlet will give a case its due coverage.

Howard Kurtz, Fox News: The NSA story, for the media, quickly morphed into the melodrama surrounding Snowden fleeing to Hong Kong and Russia, and the debate over whether he is a traitor—the kind of personality-based story that fuels endless cable segments. The New York Times editorial page called for some form of clemency. But the essential argument over government surveillance seems to have been relegated to the back burner. Perhaps that will change, for a day or two, if Obama announces his plan to rein in the NSA on Friday. But my sense is that the debate has come and gone, and our  surveillance society isn’t going to be tempered much.

Seattle Times: Washington SPEAKER of the state House Frank Chopp last session wisely deflected a lobbying offensive by local governments, which sought the power to sue people who filed public records requests that these same bureaucrats considered abusive. That request renewed the annual legislative battle over the Public Records Act, part of the Watergate-era legacy of clean and open government. On one side are citizens and journalists who see the law as a powerful tool to hold government accountable, albeit a law that needs tweaks. On the other side are public servants who tend to portray it as a costly, time-consuming way for trolls to harass government.