New England First Amendment Coalition |
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The New England First Amendment Coalition will present its 2023 Stephen Hamblett First Amendment Award to Brian McGrory, former editor of The Boston Globe and current chair of the Boston University journalism department.
NEFAC will honor McGrory at its 13th annual New England First Amendment Awards ceremony on June 1.
Also to be honored at the event is Nancy West, publisher of InDepthNH. West will receive the Michael Donoghue Freedom of Information Award for her work on behalf of the online non-profit news organization. Portland, Maine, resident Susan Hawes will receive the Antonia Orfield Citizenship Award for her successful public records battle against Cumberland County. [...]
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The New England First Amendment Coalition recently demanded that an ordinance prohibiting offensive speech during Nashua, N.H., town meetings be repealed, calling the restriction a violation of the state’s constitution.
The Nashua Board of Aldermen last year enacted an ordinance that bans “crude, vulgar, profane and/or obscene remarks.”
In a May 5 letter sent to the board, NEFAC and the ACLU of New Hampshire explained that the city “cannot constitutionally prohibit speech that is crude, vulgar, uncivil, or profane.” Doing so, the groups wrote, would violate the right of New Hampshire citizens to peaceably assemble to petition their elected representatives. [...]
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NEFAC Executive Director Justin Silverman recently joined WPRI’s Newsmakers to discuss open government issues with reporters Tim White and Eli Sherman.
Silverman explained recent attempts to reform the state’s Access to Public Records Act and open meeting law. More transparency is needed, he said, so the public can have a better understanding of how its government operates, particularly within law enforcement agencies.
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NEFAC concluded its first round of introductory lessons on state courts. The lessons are taught by local attorneys, journalists and other experts who explain how state courts in New England operate and how you can access proceedings and judicial documents. |
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All Lessons Now Available to View |
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William S. Fish, Jr.
Hinckley Allen
Alexis Garmey Chardon
and Kristine Hanly
Garmey Law
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Ruth Bourquin
ACLU of Massachusetts
Gregory V. Sullivan
NEFAC President
Malloy & Sullivan
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Raymond A. Marcaccio
Oliverio & Marcaccio
Hillary Rich
and Harry Stark
ACLU of Vermont
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FIRST AMENDMENT AND THE FREE PRESS
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The coalition participated earlier this month at the New England Scholastic Press Association Conference at Boston University and at the annual meeting of the Rhode Island Library Association. NEFAC will be providing the commencement presentation at the New England High School Journalism Collaborative conference next month.
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While many difficult interviews can be foreseen, the preparation leading up to them remains crucial and often challenging.
By viewing this lesson, you’ll learn (1) how to lay the foundation for a productive interview with a hostile source (2) the strategies needed to keep a confrontational interview safe and on topic and (3) ways to follow up with a hostile source to prevent unnecessary confrontation during future interviews.
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Register Now for Upcoming Classes
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The New England First Amendment Coalition and Union Leader Corp. recently intervened in a New Hampshire criminal court case to demand the release of records currently sealed.
The defendant in the high-profile case — State of New Hampshire v. Adam Montgomery — is accused of killing his five-year-old daughter, Harmony Montgomery. WMUR in March filed a motion to unseal the Probable Cause Statement which describes the state’s justification for charging the defendant.
A decision to unseal that document is pending. There is no compelling interest justifying the sealing of that record, explained NEFAC in a May 2 motion to intervene in the case. [...]
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The New England First Amendment Coalition is pleased to announce one law school fellow and two undergraduate interns who will be supporting the organization throughout the summer:
Brett Johnson, a rising third-year student at the University of Iowa College of Law who is also a professor in the university’s journalism school; Meredith Veilleux, a rising senior who is studying journalism at the University of Connecticut; and Naomi Scully-Bristol, a rising junior at Smith College who is news editor of The Sophian, the campus newspaper. [...]
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The president of the New England First Amendment Coalition said that the City of Rochester’s decision to deny release of government documents to The Rochester Voice under the Right to Know law is “unconstitutional.”
Greg V. Sullivan, Esq., who is also General Counsel for the Union Leader Corporation, said the digital daily’s rights and privileges under 91-A should be immediately reinstated by the city.
“The Privileges and Immunities Clause of Article IV, Section 2 of the Constitution states that ‘the citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states,” Sullivan said. “N.H. RSA 91-A contains no language relating to the residence of a requestor. The records are public records.” [...]
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Eight groups — the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association, the Disability Law Center, the ACLU of Massachusetts, Boston Center for Independent Living, Common Cause Massachusetts, MassPIRG, the New England First Amendment Coalition and the New England Newspaper and Press Association — have joined together to support the effort to make hybrid participation permanent.
“Remote access is the latest instance of universal design — alongside curb cuts, elevators, closed captioning, audiobooks, and other features — that began as accommodations and expanded to universal popularity,” the groups wrote. “Like these innovations and others emerging during the pandemic, remote access to public meetings should become a permanent feature.” [...]
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Town boards in Massachusetts are not obligated to offer public comment periods, according to Justin Silverman, executive director of New England First Amendment Coalition. “But when they open that forum, the First Amendment kicks in, and any restrictions they put on speech have to abide by First Amendment principles,” he said.
Boards can limit public comments to what’s “reasonable,” Silverman said. Cutting off comments at a certain number of minutes is legal, as is mandating that they concern items on the meeting’s agenda. Beyond that, few restrictions would pass muster, he said. [...]
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Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition, said the recent controversial move by Bridgeport reminded him of a similar case where Boston closed out requests for lack of activity before abandoning the policy.
Silverman said it is “reasonable” to reach out to individuals or entities that have long-pending FOI requests to gauge their continued interest.
“The problem is when they then don’t get a response and then automatically close out the request when the requester may in fact still be interested in the request,” he said. “That’s not a remedy to the problem. That’s just Bridgeport letting Bridgeport off the hook.” [...]
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“These are police misconduct records that we’re entitled to under the public records law,” said Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition. “It’s a bad look and it’s a bad policy to take money for a public records request that ultimately you’re not going to fulfill.”
“There is very strong case law saying that police misconduct records should be released and that there’s a great public interest in communities knowing how their police departments are operating,” said Silverman, who is also an attorney.
“We have a public records law to help create trust between citizens and the government,” Silverman said. “So those in government … should be going out of their way to help the public get the information it’s entitled to and not just take its money.” [...]
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MORE FOI & FIRST AMENDMENT NEWS
National / Regional
Connecticut
Body Camera Footage
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Maine
Public Commentary, Open Meetings
Transparency, Cargo Transportation
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Massachusetts
Student Speech
Government Audits, Public Records
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New Hampshire
Rhode Island
Vermont
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Thank You to Our Supporters |
NEFAC appreciates the support of all its donors and contributors. In particular, we would like to thank the following Leadership Circle donors ($10,000+) and Major Supporters ($2,500-$9,999):
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LEADERSHIP CIRCLE
Rhode Island Foundation
The Boston Globe
Paul and Ann Sagan
The Robertson Foundation
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MAJOR SUPPORTERS
Boston University
Hearst Conn. Media Group
Academy of New England Journalists
SPJ Foundation
Genie Gannett for the First Amendment Museum
Linda Pizzuti Henry
Champa Charitable Foundation Fund
Connecticut Public
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