What Are the Sunshine State Laws and Should they be Amended?

[mitzi]

These people put it out there and made themselves the news story.

Again, I respectfully disagree with this. If you take a moment to go and look at the list of players in this case (http://www.acandyrose.com/caylee_anthony_name_list.htm) you can honestly say that even half of the people on that list put themselves out their and made themselves the news story? The guy who was working at Blockbuster on the night KC rented movies? This man put himself out there? The cashier that checked her out at Target? Come on, gimme a break!

Actually, the guy who worked at Blockbuster did put himself out there by doing a media interview. Just sayin'. :crazy:

 

[mommyto4]

Actually, the guy who worked at Blockbuster did put himself out there by doing a media interview. Just sayin'. :crazy:

Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I guess everyone involved has to get their 15 minutes of fame, lol.

 

[tfrohning]

Would we all be here if wasn't for the discovery releases? What would we talk about?
There would be more rumors than we could bare. A least we have facts that we can share our theories. The A's started media craze in this case. ( I should said Cindy) Yea for Sunshine Law

 

[Friday]

Yes, I absolutely believe it needs to be amended. In my opinion, Florida’s “Sunshine Law” is directly to blame for much of the needless public humiliation George has had to endure.

Take for example, the e-mails between Cindy’s mother, brother, and aunt, which were made public under that law. Those e-mails informed the entire internet-savvy planet that, in the opinion of his own family and his in-laws, George Anthony is little more than worthless baggage--a lazy, perpetually unemployed man; a dishonest, compulsive gambler who lived off his poor beleaguered wife; a man whose own wife cared nothing for him and was only staying married to him to prevent him from grabbing half of what she’d been paying for her whole life.

Courtesy of that same Sunshine Law, George discovered, along with the rest of the world, that his children thought he was a pathetic joke, worthy only of a Fathers Day gift called Job Hunting for Dummies (or something like that).

Will someone please explain to me why we are all “entitled” to know these embarrassing, personal, damning things about anyone who isn’t accused of a crime? I don’t feel entitled. Do you? I think the Sunshine Law is a travesty that tramples the rights, and the very lives, of people who are not charged with any crime—people who in most cases are simply innocent bystanders trying to cooperate with LE. Suppose for a moment that in those e-mails between Cindy’s mother and her aunt, the aunt had confided that her married grandson, Leon Ludicrous, had finally decided to break up with his mistress, Docey Doe, before his pregnant wife, Penelope and the entire town of Makebelieveville, Arizona found out. Or that her beloved nephew, Joe Smith (a respected judge) who’d been a bed wetter until he was 25, had finally trusted his immediate family enough to confide that he was a homosexual and his lover was the mayor’s son.

In these imaginary, but plausible scenarios, tell me why we think it’s legal and necessary to expose, and to ruin, the lives of totally unsuspecting, uninvolved, innocent people within a radius of thousands of miles.

Back to reality now : I thought it was pitiful when I watched George’s interview with LE when he confided things to them that he said he didn’t want Cindy, or Lee, to know. I can only imagine how he was treated by CA and LA both after those tapes became public under the Sunshine Law.

If that wasn’t bad enough, he was then promptly forced by Cindy to continually appear on camera and state exactly the opposite of what he’d said in those publicly released interviews with LE. How weak, and how ludicrously dishonest, that made him seem to all of us! And he had to know that’s how he looked to everyone watching and listening.

To me, GA is a victim of the Sunshine Law, his own nagging conscience, and his wife and daughter who seem to be able to completely silence theirs. Many see him as weak, and perhaps he is—but I am very strong yet I couldn’t have lasted nearly as long as he has in a house with those two women.

I apologize in advance to all of you who will be upset by my words and strenuously object to them. I can take the heat, but please be kind to each other.

 

[TxLady2]

These people put it out there and made themselves the news story.

Again, I respectfully disagree with this. If you take a moment to go and look at the list of players in this case (http://www.acandyrose.com/caylee_anthony_name_list.htm) you can honestly say that even half of the people on that list put themselves out their and made themselves the news story? The guy who was working at Blockbuster on the night KC rented movies? This man put himself out there? The cashier that checked her out at Target? Come on, gimme a break!

ITA. The Anthony family did not put themselves out there to have every aspect of their family life, clear back to their birth, analyzed and scrutinized. The media contacted them first, when this broke. Everything after that has been a result of them being watched 24/7, web cams directed at their house, mics shoved in their faces, cameras following every move they made. They certainly did not ask for this kind of media attention, and I would think that they definitely don't like it.
In some ways, the Sunshine Law might be a good thing, but in a lot of ways, I don't think it should be everyone's business to know every detail of everyone's lives who ever knew them, before the trial. When you think about it, a lot of the players have had their personal information publicized when they did not have anything to do with this crime.
I have never read a lot of the documents associated with this case... I read some, but others were just too lengthy, or boring, or just did not seem to have much to do with the actual case. And it took to long to download a lot of them, since I am on dialup, so I did not bother. Do I feel deprived? Not at all. Am I missing a lot? Probably... but I don't care. It just doesn't seem that important to me... I know enough by reading the boards and some of it I wish I didn't know. I see a lot of people agonizing over little things and I wonder... do we really need to put ourselves through this?
A beautiful and precious little girl is dead... and her mother likely killed her. That's enough horror for me to agonize over... I don't need to know much more than that to feel sadness and grief and pain.

 

[jandkmom]

What worries me most of all of this being published is the reluctancy of people coming forward with information. RK has already said that he may not have notified LE if he knew his information was going to be so public. Would CA have called 911 if she knew her entire life was going to come under such scrutiny? Will the next person that knows of a crime come forward or be afraid that their own life be put out there to be analyzed? Would anyone ever have even known Caylee was missing if that 911 call hadn't been made? I believe that LE needs to know everything on the case, but to put everyone's business on the national news is too much. Peoples' addresses, SSN's, driver's licenses and lots of other private information is available for everyone to see and steal data.

 

[hornswoggled]

I feel that we will see the flaw in the Sunshine Law when an attempt is made to seat a jury. Everyone in Florida, not to mention the rest of the country has heard all the evidence that has been released so far. At least they have heard enough to color their impressions of Casey. It will be interesting to see if anyone here at WS gets a call for jury duty.

There is so much information out there that is already public record in most states. Tax Assessors, voter registration records in some states, birth records, death records. To view someone's divorce proceedings, all you have to do is walk in the County Clerk's Office and request to have the record pulled. If you are willing to pay, you can have a copy made. More and more counties in every state are going "online" with their records. But the one thing that should remain unavailable to the public, IMO, is the gathering of evidence for court proceedings. That stands to affect each of us, should we be unfortunate enough to have a pending trial. I could not, in good conscience, serve on a jury where I have heard so much information dispensed. Like most people, I tend to form opinions based on what I hear on the media.

 

[Gracenote]

Yes, I absolutely believe it needs to be amended. In my opinion, Florida’s “Sunshine Law” is directly to blame for much of the needless public humiliation George has had to endure.

Take for example, the e-mails between Cindy’s mother, brother, and aunt, which were made public under that law. Those e-mails informed the entire internet-savvy planet that, in the opinion of his own family and his in-laws, George Anthony is little more than worthless baggage--a lazy, perpetually unemployed man; a dishonest, compulsive gambler who lived off his poor beleaguered wife; a man whose own wife cared nothing for him and was only staying married to him to prevent him from grabbing half of what she’d been paying for her whole life.
*Snippage*
Will someone please explain to me why we are all “entitled” to know these embarrassing, personal, damning things about anyone who isn’t accused of a crime? I don’t feel entitled. Do you? I think the Sunshine Law is a travesty that tramples the rights, and the very lives, of people who are not charged with any crime—people who in most cases are simply innocent bystanders trying to cooperate with LE. *Snippage*
In these imaginary, but plausible scenarios, tell me why we think it’s legal and necessary to expose, and to ruin, the lives of totally unsuspecting, uninvolved, innocent people within a radius of thousands of miles.

Back to reality now : I thought it was pitiful when I watched George’s interview with LE when he confided things to them that he said he didn’t want Cindy, or Lee, to know. I can only imagine how he was treated by CA and LA both after those tapes became public under the Sunshine Law.
*Snippage*
To me, GA is a victim of the Sunshine Law, his own nagging conscience, and his wife and daughter who seem to be able to completely silence theirs. Many see him as weak, and perhaps he is—but I am very strong yet I couldn’t have lasted nearly as long as he has in a house with those two women.

I apologize in advance to all of you who will be upset by my words and strenuously object to them. I can take the heat, but please be kind to each other.

Well said, and I only snipped some to save bandwidth. (those of us who can't write become editors LOL) Sunshine Laws are meant to keep government and their agents/entities from robbing us all blind or hauling us into court on trumped up charges because we protest them and such. Also, so we can see how our tax dollars are spent by them and the agencies they give grants to. They were not meant to be used to tell the deepest darkest secrets of private citizens for the entertainment of the public. In my opinion, they are often misused by the media in order to sell papers. I have cringed at the info so blithly tossed out in these doc dumps that relate to individuals who only came forward to help find a missing child. Suddenly, they become part of the storyline. Are they late paying taxes? Ever been accused of a crime? Ex-lax or Metamucil? I know! Let's go through their trash! I assume that they are told by someone that all info they provide including tape recordings will be published and dissected by strangers? If not, they sure know it now.
So, yes, I guess I do feel they should be amended to some degree.
My opinion, thanks for listening to me

 

[Gypsy Road]

How right you are!! There are other grieving grandparents who have lost a beautiful grandchild at the hands of their own child - but, we haven't heard about every move they make and why not??? Because....they didn't put themselves out there in the media spewing their "twisted and absurd denials of any wrong doing" by the accused. They grieved, they were appreciative of all assistance rendered to them during their crisis and they kept their mouths shut and their private business private.

I have never seen anything like this circus in my entire life and it gets crazier with each new bombshell development.

Like GetSmart's previous post, I am also very involved in the Weleetka, OK murders of two innocent little girls. The lack of any information is maddening. We can't find out a single tidbit of information in Oklahoma. Oh, how I wish we had a law that requires releasing just a small portion of information that the Sunshine law mandates.

NO, NO, NO - please don't ever even consider doing away with the Sunshine law.

Amen!

Just this weekend I was thinking about how Jennifer Kesse's parents have conducted themselves in the media and comparing them to how the Anthony's have conducted themselves. Night and Day. The Kesse's have been grieving just as much, and longer, yet when they're out in the media they conduct themselves with dignity and integrity. They aren't out there pointing fingers, making riduculous stmts or swinging baseballs bats and hammers at people acting like they're auditioning for the Jerry Springer show. The Anthony's may have not asked for this attention, but they sure perpetuate it by their behavior.

I am a Florida resident and I am thankful for our very open and liberal Sunshine Laws. It's keeps things honest IMO. The Sunshine Laws should remain the way they are and not be amended.

 

[GetSmart]

Amen!

Just this weekend I was thinking about how Jennifer Kesse's parents have conducted themselves in the media and comparing them to how the Anthony's have conducted themselves. Night and Day. The Kesse's have been grieving just as much, and longer, yet when they're out in the media they conduct themselves with dignity and integrity. They aren't out there pointing fingers, making riduculous stmts or swinging baseballs bats and hammers at people acting like they're auditioning for the Jerry Springer show. The Anthony's may have not asked for this attention, but they sure perpetuate it by their behavior.

I am a Florida resident and I am thankful for our very open and liberal Sunshine Laws. It's keeps things honest IMO. The Sunshine Laws should remain the way they are and not be amended.

Well put Gypsy Road.

 

[Fairfaux08]

I don't think it should be amended. As a Florida resident, I actually like that I can see all the work that LE is doing, how my tax dollars are being spent, to make sure that justice is served. I think it keeps LE on its toes. I suppose if I were on the other end, though, and was accused of a crime, and every sordid detail of my life were being put on display for the world to see, I may feel differently. But, don't do the crime if you can't do the time. And you all are right about the media being the reason we all see this information. There are many more murders than this one in the Orlando area, and yet, this is the only one we've seen this much info about. But, this is also the only one with such bizarre circumstances, and as much public interest.

Thank you, I sense a voice of reason here. The intent to control and keep information constructed by the state from the people is facism in action. It is my opinion that a Free Press, the Freedom of Information Act, and the state "Sunshine Laws," attempt to keep our democracy uncorrupted and balanced. Source: "Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman." Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis (1914)

 

[Marple]

Thank you, I sense a voice of reason here. The intent to control and keep information constructed by the state from the people is facism in action. It is my opinion that a Free Press, the Freedom of Information Act, and the state "Sunshine Laws," attempt to keep our democracy uncorrupted and balanced. Source: "Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman." Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis (1914)

I don't think anyone has said that our government should operate in secrecy. Seriously, fascism? The discord in this discussion is that too much information unrelated to the case is being dumped on a public with a voracious appetite for details. JMHO

I prefer Justice William O Douglas: The privacy and dignity of our citizens [are] being whittled away by sometimes imperceptible steps. Taken individually, each step may be of little consequence. But when viewed as a whole, there begins to emerge a society quite unlike any we have seen -- a society in which government may intrude into the secret regions of a [person’s] life.

 

[Macushla]

This is a fascinating discussion and everyone has been so eloquent about their stance on this. I am having trouble deciding how I feel on this issue. Our political leaders - from town level through federal level NEED to be watched, in my opinion. Power does strange things to people and having the ability to demand to know what they are spending our money on, etc. is a good thing.

On the other hand, Friday's post was the perfect argument for doing away with the sunshine law here in Florida. If it were not for Dale Earnhardt's wife's and the subsequent actions that led to the Earnhardt Law, his autopsy photos would have been splashed across the internet, newspapers, etc. Of course there would have been a nicely worded warning about 'may not be suitable' but those pictures would have been out there. To me, that is a horror and should never be allowed.

Maybe this case will lead to further litigation that might limit what can and can't be released, like the Earnhardt case did. Maybe at some point in the future there can be a balance between what we have a RIGHT to know and what we have a RIGHT to keep private.

So I guess I would say I would like the Florida Sunshine law to be altered, not thrown out completely. It has it's place in the world, but I hate seeing it misused for nothing more than ratings and scooping a rival newspaper or TV channel.

 

[LinasK]

Will someone please explain to me why we are all “entitled” to know these embarrassing, personal, damning things about anyone who isn’t accused of a crime? I don’t feel entitled. Do you?

Ah, but George has thrown suspicion upon himself by the very fact his words to LE differ by what he has stated in TV interviews, and he is a grown man, he doesn't HAVE to say what Cindy tells him to, or even appear with her if he's not in agreement. I think charges are coming shortly for George and Cindy, and maybe also Lee. It's just a matter of time, so yes they deserve to have their lives under a microscope. This is how the family of a Guilty person like Scott Peterson acts.

 

[mommyto4]

This is a fascinating discussion and everyone has been so eloquent about their stance on this. I am having trouble deciding how I feel on this issue. Our political leaders - from town level through federal level NEED to be watched, in my opinion. Power does strange things to people and having the ability to demand to know what they are spending our money on, etc. is a good thing.

On the other hand, Friday's post was the perfect argument for doing away with the sunshine law here in Florida. If it were not for Dale Earnhardt's wife's and the subsequent actions that led to the Earnhardt Law, his autopsy photos would have been splashed across the internet, newspapers, etc. Of course there would have been a nicely worded warning about 'may not be suitable' but those pictures would have been out there. To me, that is a horror and should never be allowed.

Maybe this case will lead to further litigation that might limit what can and can't be released, like the Earnhardt case did. Maybe at some point in the future there can be a balance between what we have a RIGHT to know and what we have a RIGHT to keep private.

So I guess I would say I would like the Florida Sunshine law to be altered, not thrown out completely. It has it's place in the world, but I hate seeing it misused for nothing more than ratings and scooping a rival newspaper or TV channel.

With respect to the Sunshine Law in the Earnhardt case... does anyone else find it ironic that everything about the lower/middle income A's, (residents of Florida), has been put out there for all to see while the very upper income Earnhardt's, (out of state residents), were able to squash certain things from being put out there?

I also agree that our public officials not only need to be held accountable but watched as well. Your right, power does strange things to people and as voters and taxpayers we should know the character of the people we are voting for and where our tax dollars are going.

I'm really not even sure how some of this information can legally be released. I was a dispatcher for 6 years and before being given access to the NJDMV system and the NCIC system I had to take a class, take a test, and sign an agreement that the information contained in those records was confidential for the eyes/purposes of LE only. If I had ever put that information out there I would have not only been fired but I could have faced a fine and jail time.

I also have to agree that after this fiasco there are going to be some people out there that will not come forward to cooperate with LE for fear of what has happened to some of the innocents dragged into this nightmare of a case. I, for one, would never want to come forward about anything if I lived in Florida. Its not that I have anything to hide, I am just a private person. Not to mention that I would be mortified if I logged onto the internet and found not only all my personal info right down to what movies I get from wherever but all the personal info of my closest friends and family just because they know me.

 

[RiverRat]

With respect to the Sunshine Law in the Earnhardt case... does anyone else find it ironic that everything about the lower/middle income A's, (residents of Florida), has been put out there for all to see while the very upper income Earnhardt's, (out of state residents), were able to squash certain things from being put out there?

I also agree that our public officials not only need to be held accountable but watched as well. Your right, power does strange things to people and as voters and taxpayers we should know the character of the people we are voting for and where our tax dollars are going.

I'm really not even sure how some of this information can legally be released. I was a dispatcher for 6 years and before being given access to the NJDMV system and the NCIC system I had to take a class, take a test, and sign an agreement that the information contained in those records was confidential for the eyes/purposes of LE only. If I had ever put that information out there I would have not only been fired but I could have faced a fine and jail time.

I also have to agree that after this fiasco there are going to be some people out there that will not come forward to cooperate with LE for fear of what has happened to some of the innocents dragged into this nightmare of a case. I, for one, would never want to come forward about anything if I lived in Florida. Its not that I have anything to hide, I am just a private person. Not to mention that I would be mortified if I logged onto the internet and found not only all my personal info right down to what movies I get from wherever but all the personal info of my closest friends and family just because they know me.

Fighting against the publication of my Dale's autopsy photos is the only thing the Widow Earnhardt did that did not put money in her pockets and it saved us from seeing other photos in the Future.

12 years after JonBenet's murder, Trust Me - we wish that Colorado has the Sunshine Law and tht we could celebrate Doc Dumps instead of darkness. Case followers will NEVER see as much evidence as we have with Caylee
and I predict better results at her homicide trial.

 

[Manny]

I wonder if it would be possible for the law to be changed enough to block all the evidence and inner working of LE until a trial is in progress. I would think they could then avoid asking for change of venue or sequestering the jury panel. Both costly avenues. It would still be public record but not until the trial was in progress and the jury selected.
This Sunshine law seems to throw everyone under a bus.
I would think this would only have to apply to criminal cases.
Of course any court appearances would be public.

 

[Macushla]

Does anyone know any LE people, especially in Florida? I think it would be really interesting to know what their opinions of the Sunshine Law are! Does it make it harder from them to work a case when a lot of the info they use is thrown out there? Most of what I have read in this case are things that have already been turned over to the State's Attorney, am I right?

I would love to know how LE feels about this!

 

[Friday]

I don't think anyone has said that our government should operate in secrecy. Seriously, fascism? The discord in this discussion is that too much information unrelated to the case is being dumped on a public with a voracious appetite for details. JMHO

I prefer Justice William O Douglas: The privacy and dignity of our citizens [are] being whittled away by sometimes imperceptible steps. Taken individually, each step may be of little consequence. But when viewed as a whole, there begins to emerge a society quite unlike any we have seen -- a society in which government may intrude into the secret regions of a [person’s] life.

BRAVO!! BRAVO!! :clap::clap: :clap: I wasn't familiar with this statement, but I bow to the magnificent eloquence and simplicity of it. Never forget that we -- you and I -- are the citizens about whom he speaks and worries. Unfortunately, the protections you and I have, and to which we are entitled, also shelter people guilty of heinous crimes, but there's no way to exclude these people in advance of their trials.

Alas, there are only two choices: Either guilty people get to be treated like innocent, law abiding people...or we all get to be treated like them, like guilty people.

Wudge, if you are reading this, please, please do not agree with me. LOL :floorlaugh: Once is enough; twice will make me panic. :blowkiss:

 

[Friday]

Ah, but George has thrown suspicion upon himself by the very fact his words to LE differ by what he has stated in TV interviews, and he is a grown man, he doesn't HAVE to say what Cindy tells him to, or even appear with her if he's not in agreement. I think charges are coming shortly for George and Cindy, and maybe also Lee. It's just a matter of time, so yes they deserve to have their lives under a microscope. This is how the family of a Guilty person like Scott Peterson acts.

LinasK, I understand your position about GA, CA, and LA; God knows I am not soft on them, but my problem is that this darned Sunshine Law applies to everyone who even voluntarily gets involved with an investigation.

For example, AL and his roommates who have behaved admirably throughout this investigation, are nevertheless on record for having used drugs. No matter how minor or insignificant that may have been, their chances at certain careers are demolished now, or at least jeopardized.

Maybe I'm especially sensitive to the damage this Sunshine Law could do because I've raised boys to manhood--irritating, rambunctious, carefree college boys who grew into magnificent, responsible, successful men by the time they reached their 30's. I am blessedly unaware of most of their youthful "highjinx." If, however, they'd witnessed a crime and come forward in their teens or twenties, the Sunshine Law might have damaged or destroyed their promise and futures.

I also raised a girl to adulthood, a gorgeous, remarkablly successful executive now (who never even kissed a boy until she was married LOL). I wonder how she would have turned out if, like Amy H or the others, her every intimate alliance had been exposed for humiliating public discussion all because she happened to be acquainted with, and fooled by, a Casey Anthony.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I wish there was a way to eliminate "collateral damage to innocent (or at least uninvolved) bystanders" from the Sunshine Law. Maybe they could be classed as "secondary" witnesses. However, people like CA, GA, and LA could be classed as "primary" witnesses, and the Sunshine Law would be in full effect on them.

It's just a thought. What do you think?