Florida Activist and Journalist Wins Appeal for Public Records - PINAC News

He’s definitely not bashful when it comes to asking for public records concerning the issues important to his community, sharing the information with his community on his website Columbiacountyobserver. Two years ago, the Florida activist started questioning The Lake Shore Hospital Authority (LSHA) about a construction project proposal, estimated to cost $500,000. The LSHA is a Florida public agency that controls the maintenance and the operation... LSHA staff made many attempts to place restrictions for access to public records in their custody. Their first attempt to deny access was a demand for fees to copy the project plans so that these copies could be provided to Lilker for inspection. He would also have to give 24 hours notice before he arrived for his one-hour window to view public records. In response to his public records request, he was told that the requested records could be found on the LSHA website, but the website had problems displaying the records so Lilker requested a hard copy that LSHA refused to provide. The restrictions that LSHA set for Lilker were a clear violation of Florida’s increasingly broad public record laws. Source: photographyisnotacrime.com