From the Wilmington Star-News (3/12/10): When Louise Romanow went to the Wake County Courthouse to view search warrants late last month she was turned away.
A clerk told her not everyone could look at search warrants, she said.
But when Romanow, one of a group of women who helped the StarNews survey the availability of search warrants at court clerks’ offices in North Carolina, returned to the Wake County Courthouse in March, she got a different response.
A clerk took Romanow to a room where search warrants, which law enforcement had returned to the courthouse following searches, were filed by year.
Romanow said the clerk told her, “This is all public record,” to which Romanow, 59, responded: “I know that.”
Although Romanow said she doesn’t know why her two inquiries were met with different results, her experience shows the sometimes unpredictable nature of public access to search warrants.
While experts agree the warrants returned to the clerk’s office and not sealed by a judge are public records, they aren’t always easy to view.
The volunteers who conducted the survey on behalf of the StarNews said they were met with varied responses. Some clerks were helpful and understood the search warrants were public; others were wary and uncertain of the rules.
In interviews, several court officials said the volume and variety of records that offices maintain means citizens need to know something about a search to access a warrant.
Wake County Assistant Clerk Rick Brown said given an address, a street name or a suspect’s name, clerks will likely find the search warrant.
But broad, general requests take valuable time for a clerk and are harder to meet. Still, he said Wake County clerks will try to work with citizens to find the records they want.
As for the different results of Romanow’s visits, Brown said he didn’t know the reason. The StarNews called the Wake County Clerk’s Office between Romanow’s two visits, but Brown said the interview didn’t change office policy and doesn’t explain why Romanow was treated differently.
The office has a staff of about 160, Brown said, and it sounds like the clerk who helped Romanow the second time got it right.
Warrants public
Search warrants filed at county courthouses include a sworn affidavit containing the reasons a law enforcement agency suspects criminal activity and wants to conduct a search. When police seize property, the search warrant, after it’s filed at the courthouse, includes a list of the seized items.
For those reasons, search warrants often give details about law enforcement’s handling of an investigation that might not be available elsewhere.
While the returned warrants are public record, unless they’ve been sealed by a judge, knowing where a search occurred or who is the suspect before police have announced an arrest can be difficult.
Amanda Martin, general counsel with the N.C. Press Association, said the availability of information about searches is an important check on police powers.
Without it, the government’s authority to search people and their property might be abused or applied in a discriminating way, Martin said.
So to see if the documents are available for public oversight, the StarNews asked members of the League of Women Voters of North Carolina to visit a dozen courthouses around the state and ask to see search warrants.
Some of the women, one of whom was Romanow, went to three of the courthouses twice.
In only two out of 12 courthouses surveyed – Onslow and Orange counties – were volunteers granted access to a large number of warrants on their initial visit.
In most cases, including at the New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender county courthouses, volunteers were told they needed specific information about a search – either the name of a suspect, or the date or location of a search to see a warrant.
Martin said citizens shouldn’t need specific information to review search warrants.
“Why can’t you just look through them?” she asked, when told of the volunteers’ experiences. “These are just court records.”
The question isn’t a new one for the StarNews. In recent months, New Hanover County clerks have pulled search warrants for reporters who know specific details of a case.
While reviewing search warrants, the paper has found cases where sheriff’s deputies have waited weeks after a search to return warrants or not listed the specific amount of seized cash.
Though not illegal, New Hanover County Sheriff Ed McMahon said, those aren’t good practices and he has tightened office policies so those issues don’t recur.
Filing challenges
One problem, court officials said, is that after an arrest the search warrant moves from a general file to a defendant’s case file. Without a related, pending case, the search warrant is filed alphabetically in a general file.
Cheryl Cheers-Wilson, clerk of the Brunswick County Superior Court, said all public records are available in that clerk’s office.
But she also said a citizen would need a defendant’s name or a file number for a clerk to find a search warrant.
“You have to consider how many files we have,” Cheers-Wilson said. “We have to have a starting point” to find a specific one, she said.
Orange County Superior Court Clerk James Stanford also said that after a suspect has been charged, clerks would probably need a name to find the search warrant.
But without that information, he said, a citizen could review the office’s file of warrants that don’t have an attached case.
When asked if clerks offices could solve the filing issue by creating an index of all search warrants that are returned to the courthouse, Stanford said that would be difficult.
When police search a suspect’s phone records, the search warrant might be listed in the name of a cell phone service provider, he said. Other times warrants might be logged by the address where a search occurred or by the suspect’s name.
While maintaining public records is a primary role of court clerks, Stanford said clerk’s office staff also have dozens of other duties, from collecting fines and court costs to tracking restitution and managing jury pools.
And like other parts of state government, clerk’s offices have budget constraints, especially now. Some offices have open positions, left unfilled, to save on costs.
With so many responsibilities and fewer clerks, meeting every need can be a challenge, he said.
“I think we have a system that sorta works,” Stanford said of the availability of search warrants. “Is it perfect? No, far from it.”
by David Reynolds, Star-News Staff Writer