NC Open Government

From the Durham Herald-Sun (2/4/10): On a day when reports surfaced that her predecessor did business through a secret e-mail account, Gov. Beverly Perdue told city and county managers from around the state they have to follow the law and operate open governments.

From the Beaufort Observer (2/1/10): The Beaufort County Board of Education often makes many of its decision out of public view. This is a violation of the N. C. Open Meetings law, certainly in spirit if not technically. The intent of the law is that the public have access to the information, discussion and actual vote on any action any board takes.

From WRAL.com (1/22/10): A Superior Court judge ruled Friday that footage from a police video camera showing the events leading up to the fatal shooting of a University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill student last summer would remain sealed.

From the Asheville Citizen-Times (1/31/10): North Carolina needs a public-records law that makes documents created at public expense available to the public within a reasonable time.

From the Greensboro News and Record (12/23/09): A judge’s ruling on whether to release police dash cam videos of the moments that led up to the fatal shooting of a UNC-Chapel Hill student by Archdale police in August won’t come until at least next week, a court official said Wednesday morning.

From the Fayetteville Observer (1/21/10): The Fayetteville Police Department has spent the past week defending its policy of not routinely reporting sexual assaults.

From the Charlotte Observer (1/20/10): Police must release all 911 tapes and police radio communications associated with former Officer Marcus Jackson, a Mecklenburg judge ruled Wednesday.

From the Greenville Daily Reflector (1/20/10): Like many states, North Carolina enacted its public records law to define the relationship between people and their government. It intends to keep citizens informed of decisions by affording them access to all manner of documents utilized in the public realm, and is therefore sufficiently broad to encourage governments to err on the side of openness.

From the Wilmington StarNews (1/19/10): Kure Beach is planning to host a workshop discussing town e-mail accounts and public records.

From the Raleigh News & Observer (1/16/10): Republicans in North Carolina have the chance to become the party of open government. But in Wake County, they are missing that chance.