Greek Emails and a Marsy’s Law Explainer

Ohio Public Records Briefing – Issue #44

We know what you’re thinking! You want more Marsy’s Law content! You’ve got questions about Marsy’s Law, and we know it. We also know this.

But did YOU know that, if you’re a subscriber to Public Records Briefing, you can get answers to your Marsy’s Law public records questions on September 26 at 12pm? You read that right – that’s the day we’re having our next subscriber-only zoom. As always, it’s over the lunch hour so please enter your lunch preference here.

If you’re not a subscriber yet, what are you waiting for? Go talk to the people in the city finance office or the county auditor’s office (or maybe even this money lady) and subscribe so you can get your questions answered!

Fun Fact

If someone makes a request for a public record that you could have or should have destroyed years (even decades!) ago pursuant to your retention schedule, you must still give it to them! The Ohio Supreme Court told us that in this case, involving a request made to the Columbus Division of Police. A request freezes your ability to destroy any document, regardless of retention schedule. This includes documents that you really wish had been destroyed – if you get a request and you still have the record, you must hand it over. This may be good motivation to regularly inspect your RC-2 form and get rid of records that are no longer required to be kept. Destroying records pursuant to your RC-2 = good. Destroying them because you got a request for them = bad. This is also bad.