The Oregon Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) in a case regarding public corrections records requests. The court decided that documents from criminal investigations undertaken by Oregon law enforcement are not automatically exempt from disclosure under state public records law.

Background of the Case

The case began when OPB requested the inmate file of Jeremy Christian, the man who committed a hate crime on a Portland MAX train in 2017. The Oregon Department of Corrections had provided the file in response to a lawsuit, but the court declined to grant OPB’s request for a declaration that state corrections officials had been misinterpreting public records law.

The appeals court’s decision directs the Marion County Circuit Court to adopt a declaration in alignment with the appeals court’s finding that such records cannot be exempted from disclosure. Chief Judge Erin C. Lagesen wrote that where a record is compiled for reasons unrelated to criminal law purposes, it is not factually accurate to describe it as being compiled for criminal law purposes simply because the record is subsequently provided to law enforcement in connection with a criminal investigation.

Reaction to the Decision

Amber Campbell, a spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Corrections, declined to comment on the decision, citing pending litigation. OPB did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Marta Hanson, a spokesperson for Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield’s office, said they were reviewing the decision and referred questions to the corrections department.

The decision is the latest development in a string of state public records law disputes that could reshape access to records for Oregonians. Oregon Public Broadcasting is facing a lawsuit from Oregon Health & Science University seeking to block the disclosure of records related to the removal of a senior university leader.

Original reporting: Salem Reporter — read the source article.