Iowa Public Information Board casts secretive vote; Register files complaint
Jason Clayworth
The state board tasked with enforcing Iowa's public meetings law met in secret Friday on a case involving an accidental fatal shooting by a Burlington police officer, then voted to take action based on that secret meeting.
But the board won't say what action it took, or what it concerned.
In response, The Des Moines Register has filed a complaint that asks its board members to fine themselves $1,000 each.
"I know how frustrated you are. If I weren't on the board and not sitting here, I'd have the same frustrations," Iowa Public Information Board member Rick Morain said as he left the meeting Friday.
The board met Friday to discuss a case involving the 2015 accidental fatal shooting of Autumn Steele in front of her toddler by a Burlington policeman.
Steele's family and the Burlington Hawk Eye contend that the Iowa Department of Public Safety and Burlington police must release more than a 12-second clip of the police video that captured the shooting.
The information board so far has spent more than $43,000 over the past 2½ years prosecuting the police and safety agencies for withholding records related to that case.
But some critics worry that the board might drop the case after several new appointments changed the board's makeup.
On Friday, the board cited rules in Iowa's open meeting laws that allow governments to meet privately to discuss ongoing litigation as a reason for going into closed session.
The board required the public to leave its meeting while it met privately.
When the board resumed the public portion of its meeting, its members offered no discussion. Instead, they voted 7-0 to "to proceed in accordance with discussion in closed session."
They wouldn't say any more about the vote.
Iowa's public meetings law requires final actions be made in public.
Margaret Johnson, the board's director, was not part of the meeting, but she argued that Friday's actions were not likely final action.
Randy Evans, director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, called the board's actions "absurdly bizarre," saying the board's conduct "undermines its own credibility" and was a "sadly laughable example of transparency."
"The Iowa Public Information Board was established to help improve transparency and public access to government records and meetings," Evans said. "But the board showed today that it hardly is in a position to be telling other government bodies how they should handle public records and public meetings."
In its complaint to the Iowa Public Information Board about its own actions, The Des Moines Register asks the board to make a recording of the secret meeting immediately available, fine each of its members $1,000 and make a public apology.
A $1,000 is the max fine that can be levied by the board.