Madison County Prosecutor's office cited for open records violation

Counselor Luke Britt ruled on May 6 that the Madison County Prosecutor’s Office failed to respond to a request for public records by Kerry Elder, an inmate at the New Castle Correctional Facility.

Elder made his initial request on March 1 and filed a complaint with Britt on March 28.

In his advisory opinion, Britt said the Prosecutor’s Office failed to respond to his office after sending a letter on April 6.

“The office (Prosecutor) has not acknowledged your request, which was originally dated March 1, 2016,” Britt wrote in his ruling. “Four weeks is enough time for your complaint to be processed by the prison and for it to reach the Prosecutor’s Office.

“Despite allowing the office several weeks, you have not received a response,” the ruling continues. “Because the office has not responded to the complaint filed, I cannot determine if a response was actually sent to you or if there is another statutory justification for the actions.”

Elder was sentenced to six years for sexual misconduct with a minor.

Prosecutor Rodney Cummings said his office is not required to provide the information under Indiana law.

“It’s information he has previously been provided and, as a law enforcement agency, is considered our work product,” he said.

Cummings said a clerical error prevented his office from informing Elder the information was not being provided under state code.

“We should have responded that we were not required to provide the information,” he said. “We are sending a reply.”

Britt wrote on April 7 that the Madison County commissioners failed to respond in a timely manner to a request for records from the Madison County Highway Department made by Ron Richmond, an official with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Richmond made the request for the records on Nov. 20, 2015, to inspect or obtain copies relating to the legal representation of the Highway Department.

In the advisory opinion, Britt wrote that Madison County officials provided Richmond with several dates when the records would be received, but that time frame has elapsed.

The commissioners responded on March 7 that a search was conducted but no responsive records exist for Richmond’s request.

“While no records may exist pursuant to your request, you are still entitled to a timely response regardless of whether it is a denial or a production of documents,” Britt wrote in his opinion. “I cannot speculate whether the statements that no documents exist are accurate, only that the Commissioners took nearly three-and-a-half months to communicate their non-existence.

“This is not reasonable under any circumstances,” he continued. “Legal invoices should be fairly routine public records to curate (organize). A good steward of public records should be able to confirm their existence (or non-existence) easily and in a timely manner.”

Richmond’s request came after the commissioners fired two local union officials for alleged loafing during work on two days and taking an extended lunch break on a third day.

He said the union requested the legal bills concerning the case between the union and the Madison County Board of Commissioners.

"They told us we can come and go through the records," Richmond said. "We were told the legal bills were not itemized."

In February, the Indiana Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal by Madison County and allowed to stand an Indiana Court of Appeals ruling ordering the two employees to be reinstated.

A stipulation filed with arbitrator Steve Hayford indicates that Scott Amos is owed $36,571 and Travis Benfield is due $39,933 not including unpaid six days.