Court Blocks Quick Access to Financial Documents
Is it too much to expect California's top judges to follow their own rules?
Apparently so.
The state Judicial Council recently passed new rules that give the judiciary, like the executive branch of California government, generally ten days to determine if a request for public records will be honored.
But this week, folks at the Council's administrative arm, which is called the Administrative Office of the Courts, told us our request will take 56 days. And that's just to determine if it will be honored. Not when.
At a time when judicial leaders say they do not have enough funds to keep courthouses open every day and are planning layoffs, we think it is important to know if they are also wasting big bucks.
So, among other things, we have asked to see contracts with one of the building and maintenance companies they have hired to run the courthouses.
We've also asked to see the company's bills.
Can there really be a question of entitlement here?
We'll let you know when we find out at the end of March.
That's when we'll learn if the judges consider how they spend public money to be public business.
--Ted Rohrlich
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