Arrest Records Transparency Bill Passes Senate

Posted: June 3, 2015 | Author: | Filed under: General Law | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

Shortly after 1:00 a.m. this morning, the Senate gave final approval to a bill that substantially restores much of the public access to arrest records that was lost last year when the state Supreme Court issued a decision that held that the public was only entitled to minimal access to arrest records while a law enforcement action or prosecution was pending.  The bill, which passed the House unanimously last week, now goes to Governor Malloy for his signature.  (Read Jon Lender’s story in the Hartford Courant about the bill.)

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Arsenic And Old Lace . . . And Freedom Of Information?

Posted: January 13, 2015 | Author: | Filed under: Appellate Law | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

The Connecticut Supreme Court will consider arguments tomorrow morning in a case concerning public access to historical records about Amy Archer Gilligan–the murderer who served as the inspiration for the 1944 movie (starring Cary Grant) and the 1941 play, “Arsenic and Old Lace.”  It turns out that Gilligan, who used arsenic to poison a resident in her nursing home, spent the years 1924 through 1962 confined to a Connecticut state mental institution, now Connecticut Valley Hospital.

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Initial Thoughts On The Sandy Hook Summary Report

Posted: November 25, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: General Law | Tags: , , | 1 Comment

As promised, this afternoon Danbury State’s Attorney Stephen Sedensky released his report of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School and the Lanza home on December 14, 2012.  The 44-page report is available here.  The 236-page appendix is available here.   Having read the report, I have a few reactions.  With one exception, my comments are limited to the legal implications of certain statements in the report.  Read the rest of this entry »