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Taking Notes In School (Committee): Cyr V. Madawaska, Blethen V. Portland School Committee, And The Public's Right To Know, Benjamin J. Tucker
Taking Notes In School (Committee): Cyr V. Madawaska, Blethen V. Portland School Committee, And The Public's Right To Know, Benjamin J. Tucker
Maine Law Review
In 2007, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, decided Cyr v. Madawaska School Department, and recently decided Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. v. Portland School Committee. These decisions will guide the actions and behavior of municipal, school department, and elected officials in Maine, and will also affect public access to information under Maine’s broad “right to know” law, the Freedom of Access Act (FOAA). In Cyr, a split court held that an investigative report commissioned by the Madawaska School Department must be redacted to maintain the confidentiality of information relating to the personal history, general character, or …
Judicial Performance And Policy Implications In Moore V. Abbott, Andrew C. Helman
Judicial Performance And Policy Implications In Moore V. Abbott, Andrew C. Helman
Maine Law Review
In Moore v. Abbott, a divided Maine Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, held that a three-member panel organized by the Attorney General to investigate alleged misconduct by prosecutors and law enforcement officers did not constitute an "agency" or "public official" under Maine's Freedom of Access Act (FOAA). Therefore, the panel did not have to release records compiled during its review of the investigation and prosecution of Dennis Dechaine, who was convicted for the 1988 murder of Sarah Cherry. Justice Alexander, writing for the majority, applied a four-part test looking to whether the panel was the functional equivalent …