Justia Government & Administrative Law Opinion Summaries

Delanor L. Macksyn, an inmate at the Richland Correctional Institution, filed an original action against Department of Rehabilitation and Correction employees Kenneth Spencer, LeAnn Walker-Williams, and Kelly Rose. Macksyn sought a writ of mandamus to compel the production of records in response to multiple public-records requests and an award of statutory damages. His requests included emails, kites, grievances, and video footage.The lower court proceedings involved Spencer assuming responsibility for answering public-records requests and responding to Macksyn’s various requests. Spencer provided some of the requested records, including kites and grievances, and allowed Macksyn to view the requested video footage. However, there was a dispute over whether all requested records, particularly emails, had been produced.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and found that while Spencer had provided some records, there was insufficient evidence to confirm that all requested emails had been produced. The court issued a limited writ of mandamus ordering the respondents to, within 21 days, either produce the requested emails and certify the date of production or certify that no responsive emails exist. The court deferred ruling on Macksyn’s request for statutory damages until the respondents complied with the limited writ. The court also denied several motions filed by Macksyn, including motions to strike respondents’ brief and for judicial notice. View "State ex rel. Macksyn v. Spencer" on Justia Law

The case involves Pavan V. Parikh, the Hamilton County clerk of courts, who implemented a policy in May 2022 that eliminated remote online access to court records in residential-eviction cases older than three years from the date of judgment satisfaction. Parikh argued that this policy was to prevent misuse of court documents by the public, such as employers and landlords. The judges of the Hamilton County Municipal Court objected to this policy and issued Administrative Order No. 23-45 in October 2023, directing Parikh to rescind the policy and restore online access to the records. Parikh did not comply, leading to the judges threatening contempt proceedings.Parikh filed a complaint for a writ of prohibition in the First District Court of Appeals to prevent the judges from enforcing the administrative order and holding him in contempt. The judges counterclaimed, requesting a writ of mandamus to compel Parikh to comply with their order. The court of appeals, with visiting judges from the Twelfth District, ruled in favor of the judges, granting their motion for judgment on the pleadings on the prohibition claim and issuing a writ of mandamus ordering Parikh to rescind his policy and comply with the administrative order.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and affirmed the court of appeals' judgment. The court held that Parikh had a clear legal duty under R.C. 1901.31(E) to comply with the judges' administrative order. The court also determined that Parikh had an adequate remedy through appeal if held in contempt, and the judges did not patently and unambiguously lack jurisdiction to hold him in contempt for noncompliance. Therefore, the court affirmed the denial of Parikh's request for a writ of prohibition and the granting of the judges' request for a writ of mandamus. View "State ex rel. Parikh v. Berkowitz" on Justia Law

Ronald Ayers, an inmate at the Lake Erie Correctional Institution, petitioned for a writ of mandamus to compel Laura Sackett, the prison's records custodian, to produce public records. Ayers requested a copy of the Department of Administrative Services’ general retention schedule and video footage from a security search of his cell on August 31, 2023. Sackett denied the requests, claiming the retention schedule was not specific to the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction and that the video footage was not preserved as it did not document a "qualifying event."The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case after Ayers filed his petition. The court found that Ayers did not need to exhaust administrative remedies before filing for mandamus. The court determined that the requested video footage did not exist at the time of Ayers' request, as it had been recorded over, and thus Sackett correctly denied this request. However, the court found that the general retention schedule was a public record received and used by the prison, and Sackett's denial of this request was not justified.The Supreme Court of Ohio granted Ayers' writ of mandamus in part, ordering Sackett to produce the retention schedule. The court awarded Ayers $1,000 in statutory damages for the improper denial of the retention schedule but denied his request for court costs due to his affidavit of indigency. The court denied Ayers' motions for discovery as moot. View "State ex rel. Ayers v. Sackett" on Justia Law

Tony Fenstermaker, an inmate at the Southeastern Correctional Institution, requested public records from Union County Prosecuting Attorney David W. Phillips on March 20, 2024. Fenstermaker sought the records-retention schedule of the prosecutor’s office, certified statements prepared under former R.C. 309.161 for the years 2016 through 2022, and the cashbook/journal maintained under R.C. 2335.252 for the same period. Phillips acknowledged receipt of the request on March 22, 2024, but did not provide the requested records until June 28, 2024.Fenstermaker filed a mandamus action on June 10, 2024, seeking to compel Phillips to produce the records and to award statutory damages. The Supreme Court of Ohio granted an alternative writ and referred the case to mediation, which was unsuccessful. The case was returned to the regular docket, and both parties submitted evidence and briefs.The Supreme Court of Ohio found that Phillips had provided the requested records, rendering the mandamus request moot. However, the court determined that Phillips had failed to produce the records within a reasonable period, as the delay exceeded three months without sufficient justification. Consequently, the court awarded Fenstermaker $1,000 in statutory damages under R.C. 149.43(C)(2) for the delay. The court denied Fenstermaker’s request for prejudgment interest, as the case was not based on tortious conduct and there was no precedent for awarding prejudgment interest in public-records cases. View "State ex rel. Fenstermaker v. Phillips" on Justia Law

An inmate, Edward Brown, filed a mandamus action against Laura Sackett, an employee at the Lake Erie Correctional Institution, for allegedly failing to respond to his public-records requests. Brown requested access to a media report and video footage of an alleged assault against him in March 2022 and a copy of the contract between CoreCivic, Inc. and the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC) regarding the management of the institution.The lower court initially dismissed Brown's complaint, but upon reconsideration, the Supreme Court of Ohio issued an alternative writ, setting a schedule for evidence and briefs. Sackett responded to Brown's requests by stating that no records of the alleged assault existed and that the contract would require redaction, costing $206.05, including labor costs for redaction. Brown did not pay the fee, and the contract was not provided.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and found that Sackett complied with her duties regarding the February 16 request by asking Brown for more specific information, which he did not provide. Therefore, the court denied the writ of mandamus and statutory damages for this request. However, the court found that Sackett improperly included labor costs in the fee for the contract requested on February 20, as public offices can only charge actual copying costs and postage. The court issued a writ of mandamus ordering Sackett to provide the contract upon Brown's payment of $158.05 for copying and postage. Additionally, the court awarded Brown $1,000 in statutory damages for Sackett's failure to make the contract available at cost and within a reasonable time. Brown's request for court costs was denied due to his indigency affidavit. View "State ex rel. Brown v. Sackett" on Justia Law

In December 2023, Mary McDonald filed a petition to run as a Republican candidate for a seat on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. A protest was filed against her candidacy by Mohamed Al-Hamdani and Brenda Blausser, alleging she was not qualified due to her position in the Democratic Party and other statutory non-compliances. During the protest hearing, it was revealed that a confidential legal memorandum from the county prosecutor’s office had been leaked to the protesters. An investigation found that the board’s deputy director, Russell M. Joseph, had forwarded the memo from his board email to his personal email and then to Al-Hamdani.The Montgomery County Board of Elections initially denied a public-records request for emails related to the memo, citing attorney-client privilege and lack of access to the records. After further clarification, the board maintained its position, leading Joseph J. Platt to file an original action seeking a writ of mandamus to compel the board to produce the emails and to organize and maintain public records properly.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and determined that the email from the prosecutor’s office to the board and the email Joseph sent from his board email to his personal email were public records and not protected by attorney-client privilege. However, the email Joseph sent from his personal email to Al-Hamdani was not considered a public record. The court granted the writ in part, ordering the board to produce the two emails, awarded Platt $1,000 in statutory damages, court costs, and attorney fees subject to an itemized application. The court denied the writ regarding the organization and maintenance of records. View "State ex rel. Platt v Montgomery Cty. Bd. of Elections" on Justia Law

An inmate at Grafton Correctional Institution filed a mandamus action against the warden’s administrative assistant and public-information officer, seeking a writ of mandamus to compel the production of public records and an award of statutory damages. The inmate had sent 13 electronic kites requesting copies of public records, focusing on seven kites sent between May 27 and June 2, 2024. The inmate claimed that the requested records were not provided in a timely manner.The case was initially filed in June 2024. The respondent acknowledged receiving the kites within four to seven days and provided some records on September 3 and others on September 5, 2024. The respondent argued that the delay was due to the volume of requests from the inmate, who had made over 50 public-records requests for more than 300 documents since May 2024. The lower court granted an alternative writ, setting a schedule for evidence and briefs. Both parties submitted their evidence and briefs, and the inmate filed several motions, including a motion to strike the respondent’s evidence and motions to proceed to judgment.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and found that the inmate’s mandamus claim was moot because he had received all the requested records. The court also determined that the three-month response time was reasonable given the volume of requests the respondent had to handle. Consequently, the court denied the inmate’s requests for a writ of mandamus and statutory damages, as well as all his motions. View "State ex rel. Robinson v. Wesson" on Justia Law

Kimani Ware, an inmate at the Richland Correctional Institution (RCI), sought a writ of mandamus to compel Doug Smith, identified as RCI’s Library Supervisor, to produce public records under Ohio’s Public Records Act, R.C. 149.43. Ware requested ten different documents related to the RCI library, including procedure manuals, monthly reports, advisory committee forms, logs of inmate library access, and various library schedules and notices. Ware also sought statutory damages under the Act.Ware filed the mandamus action after Smith allegedly denied his requests. Smith responded that he did not maintain the requested records and directed Ware to the librarian and library staff for assistance. Smith argued that Ware did not explicitly state his requests were public-records requests and that he believed Ware was asking for information rather than copies of documents. The RCI librarian confirmed that Ware had not asked her to print the requested documents and that she had complied with all previous printing requests from Ware.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and found that Ware did not meet the burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that Smith failed to comply with the Public Records Act. The court held that Smith’s direction to Ware to contact the librarian and library staff did not constitute a denial of the requests. Additionally, the court found that Ware’s reasons for requesting the records were irrelevant to his entitlement under the Act.The Supreme Court of Ohio denied Ware’s claim for a writ of mandamus and his request for statutory damages, concluding that Ware did not show that Smith failed to comply with an obligation under R.C. 149.43(B). View "State ex rel. Ware v. Smith" on Justia Law

An inmate, Kimani E. Ware, sent eight public-records requests to the Cuyahoga County Prosecuting Attorney, Michael C. O’Malley, between September and December 2023. Ware sought 21 categories of records, including personnel files and payroll records of O’Malley and two assistant prosecuting attorneys, as well as a list of cases assigned to an assistant prosecutor. O’Malley denied the requests, arguing that the records concerned criminal prosecutions and that Ware, as an inmate, needed to comply with R.C. 149.43(B)(8) before being entitled to the records.Ware filed a mandamus action in April 2024, seeking an order for the production of the records, statutory damages, and court costs. The Supreme Court of Ohio previously granted in part O’Malley’s motion for judgment on the pleadings, leaving nine records requests at issue. O’Malley argued that R.C. 149.43(B)(8) applied, which limits an inmate’s right to obtain records concerning a criminal investigation or prosecution without a judicial finding.The Supreme Court of Ohio held that the personnel files and payroll records of the prosecuting attorneys did not fall under R.C. 149.43(B)(8) and ordered O’Malley to produce these records, subject to proper redactions. The court also ordered O’Malley to produce a list of cases assigned to Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Williamson in 1999 or certify that no such record exists. However, the court denied the writ for the requests seeking specific invoices or pay stubs for work performed by Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Van, as no such records existed.The court denied Ware’s request for statutory damages for the personnel files and payroll records but deferred the determination of statutory damages for the list of cases until O’Malley complied with the limited writ. The court awarded Ware $200 for court costs. View "State ex rel. Ware v. O'Malley" on Justia Law

An inmate at the Richland Correctional Institution, Kimani E. Ware, sought a writ of mandamus to compel Richland County Sheriff Steve Sheldon to provide public records he requested, including a booking report, use-of-force reports, and policies on inmate grievances and use of force. Ware also sought statutory damages and court costs.Ware sent his public-records request in October 2022, and the sheriff's office responded in November 2022. However, there was conflicting evidence regarding the completeness of the sheriff's response. Ware claimed that the sheriff did not provide the inmate-grievance policy and use-of-force policy, and that the sheriff provided incident reports instead of the requested use-of-force reports. Ware filed his mandamus complaint in December 2023, and the sheriff moved to dismiss, which was denied by the court. Both parties submitted evidence, but only Ware filed a timely merit brief.The Supreme Court of Ohio reviewed the case and found discrepancies in the evidence provided by Ware, suggesting that Ware may have altered the response letter from the sheriff's office. The court determined that Ware did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that the sheriff failed to provide the requested records. Consequently, the court denied Ware's claim for a writ of mandamus and his requests for statutory damages and court costs. The court also denied motions from both parties for leave to file additional evidence. View "State ex rel. Ware v. Sheldon" on Justia Law