Judge dismisses public records lawsuit against Idaho Rep. Giddings  – Idaho Capital Sun

A Fourth District choose in Ada County dismissed a public data lawsuit towards Rep. Priscilla Giddings, R-White Hen, ruling she didn’t act in unhealthy religion and that there was no must compel disclosure of data.

District Decide Peter G. Barton dismissed the case with prejudice, which means the case can’t be refiled in Ada County.

Giddings, who ran for lieutenant governor within the Idaho Republican major on Tuesday, was the topic of a civil criticism filed by Erika Birch, a Boise lawyer who represented the legislative intern who accused former Rep. Aaron von Ehlinger of rape in March 2021. A jury convicted von Ehlinger of the rape cost in April, and he will probably be sentenced on the finish of July.

Birch filed the criticism in mid-January, however Giddings invoked her privilege as a legislator to defer civil fits till after the legislative session.

Birch’s criticism said she despatched a public data request to Giddings on Aug. 19, 2021, for any written or digital communications between Giddings and von Ehlinger that had been associated to her shopper, who’s known as Jane Doe to guard her id. Birch’s request encompassed the ethics committee criticism and listening to involving von Ehlinger in March, in addition to the ethics criticism and listening to for Giddings in August. Her request additionally included communications between Giddings and David Leroy, an lawyer who briefly represented von Ehlinger through the ethics investigation.

Two days after Birch’s request, Giddings responded to Birch by saying, “My workplace doesn’t have any public file associated to your request that isn’t already public. I’ve requested the Legislative Companies Workplace to look their databases as properly. My workplace considers this request closed.”

Giddings said once more in court docket paperwork that she didn’t have data attentive to Birch’s request, but in addition added that she deleted two emails from Leroy earlier within the yr that may have been pertinent to Birch’s request. That truth was included in a short filed on Giddings’ behalf by Deputy Legal professional Common W. Scott Zanzig. 

“Rep. Giddings by no means had any written communications with Aaron von Ehlinger in regards to the requested matters,” Zanzig wrote. “She had acquired two emails from Mr. Leroy in regards to the requested matters in March 2021, however she had deleted each emails shortly after she acquired them, many months earlier than Ms. Birch’s request.”

No proof of withholding on Giddings’ half, choose guidelines

Birch mentioned Giddings’ response to the data request was imprecise, ambiguous and incomplete, significantly since she didn’t point out if she had looked for responsive data past her legislative emails. Underneath Idaho regulation, written communications prolong to textual content messages, messaging apps and every other platforms the place correspondence might need occurred.

“There isn’t a proof at the moment earlier than this Courtroom that ‘sure public data are being improperly withheld from a member of the general public.’ There isn’t a proof of withholding or improper withholding,” Barton wrote in his ruling.

Wendy Olson, who represented Birch within the lawsuit, mentioned she and her shopper suppose the choice units a foul precedent for these in public workplace.

“We’re disillusioned by the ruling and the clear message it sends to public officers who want to disregard their obligations below the general public data act,” Olson informed the Capital Solar. “Accountable public officers and public companies will proceed to take critically their obligations and perceive the significance of transparency to a free and democratic authorities. Different public officers will probably be inspired to obfuscate and to require requestors to file a lawsuit to study that paperwork don’t exist.”

Giddings couldn’t be reached for remark.

Barton mentioned the truth that the requester filed a lawsuit doesn’t meet the statutory necessities of unhealthy religion or improper withholding of data, nor did it represent a frivolous refusal on Giddings’ half.

“Ms. Birch’s lawsuit achieved one goal: Ms. Giddings lastly was required to reply a public data request made many months earlier,” Olson mentioned. “Absent this lawsuit, we might not have realized that she destroyed emails she had with Mr. Leroy.”