Release of Tethering Records Settles North Carolina Public Record Suit
Release of Tethering Records Settles North Carolina Public Record Suit
North Carolina prison officials agreed to give a prisoner segregation tethering records to settle his public record law violation suit.
The North Carolina Department of Corrections (NCDOC) requires prisoners who are segregated at the Alexander Correctional Institution, (ACI) to be placed on a “dog leash” or tether anytime they are outside their cell. ACI prisoner Joseph Michael Griffith was repeatedly subjected to this tethering practice.
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 132-1(b), Griffith made an August 27, 2005 public record request of ACI Administrator Reggie Weisner. He requested copies of “all record(s) on the subject of the dog leash and/or tether used in segregation” at Alexander, including Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), emails, internal memos and correspondence, grievances, test and evaluation reports, “all records of injur(ies) to inmates and/or staff during the use of the leash/tether,” financial records of leash/tether purchases, all records related to his segregation at Alexander, and all records related to the grievances and investigations concerning his treatment while in segregation.
On September 26, 2005, R. Preston Townsend responded to Griffith’s public record request, declaring that “the documentation you request can only be obtained by a court order.”
Griffith then brought suit against Weisner and Townsend in state court on October 6, 2005. He alleged that both defendants denied him access to the requested public records and requested that the court order prison officials to allow him to view and copy any and all documents free of charge because he was indigent.
On February 1, 2006, the parties entered into a settlement agreement to resolve the case. Griffith agreed to pay $6.20 for 62 pages of documents, including redacted copies of the NCDOC tethering SOP, financial records and redacted copies of grievances and investigations on the use of tethers.
Prison officials claimed that no internal memos or correspondence, test and evaluation reports, or records of prisoner or staff tether injuries existed. They also withheld, as confidential, incarceration records of Griffith’s time in segregation.
Griffith agreed to allow Defendants to redact any information “related to prison security” and “that may identify” other prisoners. He also agreed to voluntarily dismiss the action with prejudice. See: Griffith v. Weisner, North Carolina Superior Court No. 05-CVS-497 (2006).
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Related legal case
Griffith v. Weisner
| Year | 2006 |
|---|---|
| Cite | North Carolina Superior Court No. 05-CVS-497 (2006) |
| Level | State Trial Court |
| Conclusion | Settlement |