Alabama

October 8, 2008: A Montgomery judge has ruled the Alabama Department of Corrections must comply with the state’s Open Records Act and release the results of its investigation into the death of inmate Farron Barksdale.

Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Eugene W. Reese instructed DOC Commissioner Richard Allen to provide the records in an order released Wednesday.

In doing so, Reese dismissed the case Mary Barksdale filed against Allen in an attempt to find out how her son ended up comatose in his cell just three days after entering the state’s prison system. Read the full article here.

County to disclose financial details
September 10, 2008: Jackson County Commission Chairman James Tidmore announced Monday that he will provide the public with a balance of all of the county's funds, as well as the amounts owed on debts, during the next commission meeting. Read the full article here.

Trial in Barksdale suit set Aug. 11
July 26, 2008: Mary Barksdale’s Open Records Act suit against the state Department of Corrections is set for trial August 11, according to Sarah Geraghty, an attorney for Southern Center for Human Rights in Atlanta.

Barksdale, mother of the late Farron Barksdale, who died after being incarcerated at Kilby Correctional Facility a year ago, is seeking access to her son’s prison records, which DOC officials contend do not fall under the Open Records Act. Read the full article here.

Sheriff Chris Curry is wrong about trying to keep the public out of the Shelby County Commission's budget-writing process for his department
July 17, 2008: Shelby County Sheriff Chris Curry is raising enough red flags to supply a May Day parade in Moscow.

Curry is asking county commissioners to meet privately, one or two at a time, with the department's operations commander, Capt. Ken Burchfield, to discuss the sheriff's 2008-09 budget request. Read the full editorial here.

Transparency & Government

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