News articles show that city of Charlottesville and other local government entities respond to online only news media and out-of-state requesters...
News articles reviewed by this author show that the city of Charlottesville, and other local Virginia government entities respond to Freedom of Information Act requests from online only media outlets and out-of-state requesters in direct contrast to a recent denial of a public records request submitted by this same author, by the city of Charlottesville. It is not known at this time the number of other online only or traditional print media outlets who have been required to submit a second class mailing permit or undergo a circulation audit by an independent auditor under Section 8.01-324 of the Virginia Code. It is also unclear at this time the reason why the city of Charlottesville is selectively denying Freedom of Information Act requests. We will update this post with any further examples we are able to uncover of the city of Charlottesville's egregious abuses of power.
September 4, 2017, "UVA Professor Warned Police Of Impending Violence On Night Before Heather Heyer's Death", Ken Klippenstein, Shadowproof
"according to documents obtained by Shadowproof under a Freedom of Information Act request."
September 1, 2017, "Emails Suggest UVA Police Downplayed White Supremacist Groups During Unite The Right Rally", Ken Klippenstein, Shadowproof
"Shadowproof has obtained all emails sent from the University of Virginia’s (UVA) police chief during the “Unite the Right” rally under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
The emails are dated August 11 and 12"
August 17, 2017, "Were Police Told to ‘Stand Down’ Amid Violence in Charlottesville?", Bethania Palma, Snopes
"However we were able to confirm via a Freedom of Information Act request that no official “stand down” order was given."
"Despite the critique by some that police didn’t do enough to quell violence, both police Chief Al Thomas and city spokeswoman Miriam Dickler said no such order was issued. We filed a FOIA seeking any records documenting such an order by either the city, or by any agency outside the city to Charlottesville police and received this response: We have no records responsive to this request."
August 21, 2017, "In Charlottesville, ‘Police Did Nothing’", Jackson Landers, Rewire News
"As of press time, CPD did not respond to a request for a copy of the safety plan used on August 12. The Virginia State Police refused to provide a copy of their plan, writing that “to the extent that such records contain specific tactical plans, the disclosure of which would jeopardize the safety or security of law-enforcement personnel or the general public,” they decline to cooperate with Rewire’s FOIA request for records pertaining to the events August 12."
April 18, 2018, "Charlottesville got trolled. Reporters didn’t cover it.", Brendan Fitzgerald, CJR
"Before August 12, it would have seemed unlikely that such a survey would reach beyond Charlottesville. Since the “Unite the Right” rally, however, the city has been identified as both a symbolic and literal battleground by white supremacists. A FOIA request filed by CJR reveals a number of disturbing racist and anti-semitic survey responses, many of which seem to have been solicited via white supremacist message-board threads and submitted alongside community input. What’s surprising, given the city’s recent history, is that those comments—and the susceptibility of the city survey to racist trolling—received so little coverage from local news."
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