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Show News Staffers Attend GRAMA Seminar in Salt Lake City Garfield County News staffers took part recently in a Salt Lake City GRAMA seminar designed to familiarize them with the laws governing access to public records and Utah's "Sunshine Laws." The workshop was sponsored by the Utah Foundation for Open Government, Utah Society of Professional Journalists, and the Utah Press Association. GRAMA (Government Records Access and Management Act) and the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act were outlined and discussed in an open forum format with several of Utah's most knowledgeable and experienced people presenting. Jeff Hunt, attorney with Parr, Waddoups, Brown, Gee and Loveless, explained what can and can't be legally accessed in the court system and how to handle what can often be sticky court issues. Hunt said that the records belong to the public, not the government, and the public should assume they are open unless the government entity can cite the law that specifically seals them. Michael O'Brien, attorney with Jones, Waldo, Holbrook, and McDonough, provided a valuable workshop with detailed procedure on accessing court records. The Utah Press Association's legislative monitor Joel Campbell explained Utah's public records law. Campbell is employed with the Ogden Standard Examiner. News editor Nancy Twitchell and reportertechnician Rebecca Bales agreed that the seminar clarified many issues for them, gave them greater confidence, and reassured them about the proper and legal procedure in seeking out records that should be readily available to the public. |
