Transparency
A Tennessee County Destroyed Hundreds of Records Requested by a Local Newspaper
The Hamilton County Attorney's Office later admitted that its policies conflict with the state's public records law.
Is the FBI Snooping on Political Groups and Ideological Publications?
The Cato Institute wants Congress to investigate the FBI after it refused to confirm or deny the existence of files on dozens of political advocacy groups.
One Year After It Passed, California's Police Accountability Law Is Working
In requiring greater transparency in police record-keeping, California proves it can do at least one thing right.
Massachusetts Police Test Out Robot Dogs. Is Dystopia on Its Way?
Don’t be afraid of the robopups, but make sure we leash law enforcement to keep officers from misusing them.
Environmental Protection Agency
Is Trump's EPA Seeking To Gut Good Science?
Congress wants to know if the agency is strengthening transparency or silencing science.
New Yorkers Overwhelmingly Voted To Give a Civilian Oversight Board More Power To Investigate Lying Cops
Police unions are unhappy.
California's Top Court Finally Allows Law Enforcement Agencies to Share List of Problem Cops With Prosecutors
Powerful unions and state-mandated secrecy made it a fight to know about misconduct.
California Police Agencies Were Supposed To Make Misconduct Records Public. Why Isn't It Happening?
Media outlets are seeing foot-dragging, destroyed records, and demands for big money for compliance.
Expect More Government Secrecy in Business Relationships, Thanks to Supreme Court
Yesterday's Supreme Court ruling expanded when the government can keep business records secret. That's bad news for transparency
The City of Vallejo, California, Has a Police Problem—and It's All Being Caught on Camera
A small city in California has been plagued by police shootings, costly civil rights lawsuits, and incidents of excessive force.
Australian Police Raided a Newsroom and a Journalist's Home for Reporting on Government Secrets
The police conducted two searches in two days to track down who is leaking things leaders don’t want the public to know.
Alabama Passes New Transparency Requirements for Civil Asset Forfeiture
Alabama is one of the least transparent states in the U.S. when it comes to civil asset forfeiture. That could be changing.
Texas Police Union Kills Effort To Close State's 'Dead Suspect Loophole'
Texas law lets police hide records of suspects who die in custody from grieving families. It could have been fixed, but a police union torpedoed the reform bill.
Reminder To All the News Outlets Hiring Rahm Emanuel: He's Awful
Emanuel was a habitual violator of Illinois' public records laws and shielded the police from public scrutiny whenever he could.
Trial (Sort of) Begins Over Police Officer's Conduct in Eric Garner's Death
Five years later, Daniel Pantaleo faces administrative justice.
Julian Assange Sentenced to 50 Weeks in U.K. Prison for Skipping Bail
And the WikiLeaks founder will be in court again tomorrow.
Check Out This New Database of Corrupt Cops
USA Today launches an important new tool for tracking officers who have been fired for misconduct.
Are Food-Stamp Receipts Beyond the Reach of FOIA? Supreme Court Hears Arguments Today
Plus: Violence in Sri Lanka leads to social media suppression, and the White House wants to make it harder for pretrial diversion participants to get government jobs.
The Washington Establishment Seems Pretty Happy About Julian Assange's Arrest
The WikiLeaks founder has few if any defenders in Congress.
Julian Assange and WikiLeaks Deserve Our Thanks for Making Governments More Transparent
The world is a better place now that it's harder than ever for governments to keep secrets.
Did We Overestimate the Benefits of Police Body Cameras?
A review of 70 studies shows only limited benefits.
The Coming Transparency Battle Over the Mueller Report
The battle over the Mueller report will pit national security, executive privilege, and privacy against the public interest in the Russia investigation.
Sen. Rand Paul Is Willing to Withhold Mueller Report as Political Leverage
Politicizing transparency is not a way to help Americans understand Russia investigation.
California News Outlets Team Up To Delve Into Police Misconduct Records
More than 30 organizations are reviewing thousands of newly released documents about bad cop behavior
Trump White House Claims Executive Privilege Over Agency Memos on Marijuana Legalization
Want to know what federal agencies are telling the White House about marijuana legalization? Too bad. It's secret.
California Supreme Court Turns Away Attempt to Keep Police Misconduct Records Sealed
A law that forced open decades of secret information about law enforcement behavior is slowly being implemented.
No Charges Against Police Who Killed Stephon Clark, but Anger Has Led to Important Reforms
After police killed an unarmed man in a backyard in Sacramento, outrage led to greater transparency about officer conduct.
California Wants Transparency From Trump, but Won't Release State Police Records
Xavier Becerra conceals bad behavior by cops in his state, and even threatens journalists attempting to expose them.
Court Rules Against NYPD Union: Body Cam Footage Can Be Made Public
The NYPD's largest union was dealt a defeat in its attempt to make body cam footage confidential, but it says it might appeal.
ACLU Releases Model Legislation To Unlock the 'Black Box' of Prosecutor Secrecy
"They're the most powerful player in the criminal justice system. It's really important to know how they use that discretion behind closed doors."
N.C. Mom Says SWAT Team 'Terrorized' Her 6-Year-Old Autistic Son
"My son with autism was forced out of the home with military-style rifles aimed at him and made to sit on the cold, wet ground for over an hour."
New York Police Killed Her Son, Then Refused to Answer Her Questions. The Law They're Hiding Behind Could Soon Be Repealed.
An obscure provision designed to protect personnel records makes it nearly impossible to hold the state's cops accountable.
Los Angeles Sheriff's Department
When Reason Requested the New L.A. Sheriff's Disciplinary Records, the Deputies Union Got an Injunction to Block Us
A newly passed police transparency bill is under attack across the state. The latest tactic: insisting it's not retroactive.
California Police Fight To Stop New Law Releasing Their Misconduct Records
A new year brings new transparency, and new lawsuits to try to limit it.
How the 'Dead Suspect Loophole' Lets Texas Police Hide Records of Jail Deaths and Shootings
A Reason investigation of a notorious Texas public records loophole found 81 cases where police hid records of shootings and deaths in custody.
New York's Top Court Shields Police Misconduct Records From Public View
It's up to state lawmakers to defy the will of the unions to change the rules.
Los Angeles Sheriff's Department
L.A. County's New Blue-Wave Sheriff Is No Friend to Criminal Justice Reform
Alex Villanueva openly wants to get rid of constitutional policing advisors and to conceal names of bad deputies from prosecutors.
Unarmed Bay Area Man Dies After Police Tasering; New California Laws Will Force Open the Records
It's harder now for law enforcement officials to conceal what happened in deadly encounters with citizens.
A Law Intended to Protect Crime Victims Is Being Used to Shield the Identities of Police Officers
The vague wording of Marsy's Laws allows law enforcement to classify themselves as "victims" after shooting suspects.
Data Showing Navy's Poor Aviation Safety Record Disappears From Website
If the Navy wants people to trust that it's taking steps to be better, less transparency isn't going to help.
Californians Will Finally Get Access to Records About Police Misconduct
Gov. Jerry Brown signs bills dramatically increasing transparency about law enforcement behavior.
California Lawmakers Vote to Give Citizens Access to Records About Police Misbehavior
State law keeps misconduct secret from the public. That may be about to change.
Oops! The EPA Published the Social Security Numbers of People Who Filed FOIA Requests
Thanks to a design bug in a government transparency website, dozens of social security numbers were mistakenly made public.
