The Florida Supreme Court last week agreed to take up a case involving Tallahassee police officers who argue that the voter-approved Marsy’s Law initiative shields the release of officers’ names when they become crime victims.
The First District Court of Appeal sided with the Florida Police Benevolent Association (FPBA) in April, concluding that the names of officers who are attacked while on duty can be withheld to protect them and their families from potential harassment. But the city of Tallahassee and media organizations argue that granting such protections to officers goes against the broad public right to inspect public records.
The appeals court found that when officers are attacked by people wielding weapons, they are entitled to have their names protected from public disclosure, since Florida voters sought to give this type of privacy protection to crime victims.
“With multiple online search resources available to seek out information about individuals when the person’s name is known, a crime victim’s name is the key that opens the door to locating the victim,” the appeals court said.
The state Supreme Court said in a Dec. 21 order that initial briefs from the city and the FPBA needed to be submitted during January and February, with oral argument following thereafter.
Pamela Marsh, executive director of the Florida First Amendment Foundation, expressed satisfaction that the high court will resolve the matter.
“We are grateful that the Florida Supreme Court unanimously agreed to accept jurisdiction and hear oral argument,” Marsh said in an email to the Florida Record. “The justices all agreed to consider the issue of whether on-duty law enforcement officers can be considered ‘victims’ under Marsy’s law and have their identities hidden from the public forever.”
The trial court that heard the case sided with Tallahassee and media organizations, finding that the police officers’ efforts to shield themselves from potential threats by people in the community went beyond the scope of Marsy’s Law. The identity of an officer acting in his official capacity cannot be treated as confidential when the officer is a crime victim, the trial court said.
“At a time when transparency is the only way to build trust, this is a critical issue regarding the accountability of officers serving Florida citizens,” Marsh said.