The Buffalo News and 26 other news organizations are fighting a legal effort by Buffalo police and firefighter unions to make some disciplinary records secret.
In June, following a change in state law,  the disciplinary records of police officers and firefighters were no longer permitted to be withheld from the public.Â
But attorneys for the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association and Buffalo Professional Firefighters Association argue the city should still withhold information about disciplinary matters involving unsubstantiated or pending allegations, or matters subject to confidential settlement agreements, based on other legal protections.
The national Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, The Buffalo News, and other national and local print and broadcast organizations filed a 15-page legal brief opposing the effort.
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"We don’t have any axes to grind here against the police or the fire department or anyone in government," said Joseph M. Finnerty, the Buffalo-based First Amendment lawyer whose firm helped write the brief. "Our function is to expose and bring light to what’s going on. "Â
The unions based their arguments on the provisions of their local bargaining agreements and the state constitution. Attorneys for the unions wrote in court papers that charges can be levied against police and firefighters without any supporting evidence and that the release of that information represents an unwarranted invasion of privacy.
Last month, State Supreme Court Justice Frank A. Sedita III temporarily blocked the City of Buffalo from releasing these types of records. He is expected to hear the matter next month.
In the brief filed Friday, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and 26 other news organizations argued that the disclosure of all disciplinary complaints is important to promote government accountability and transparency and to prevent the abuse of power.
"In short," attorneys for the news organizations wrote, "the release of police misconduct records, including non-final records, makes possible powerful investigative reporting that can serve as a catalyst for important community dialogues and reform efforts. "
The news outlets also argue that contractual obligations laid out by the police and firefighters unions do not supersede the authority of state law.
News organizations are not the only ones weighing in on the case made by unions against the City of Buffalo. A week ago, the New York Civil Liberties Union filed a motion to intervene in the case, stating its concerns that the city won't try hard enough to make sure records are made public.
The latest brief filed by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press includes 26 other media organizations. Aside from The Buffalo News, the brief is supported by the Associated Press; BuzzFeed; E.W. Scripps, which owns WKBW; Fox Television; Freedom of the Press Foundation; Gannett; International Documentary Association; Investigative Post; Mother Jones; National Freedom of Information Coalition; National Newspaper Association; National Press Club and its affiliate, the National Press Club Journalism Institute; National Press Photographers Association; New York Publishers Association; New York Public Radio; The New York Times; News Leaders Association; News Media Alliance; Nexstar Broadcasting, which owns WIVB and WNLO; Penguin Random House; Sinclair; Society of Environmental Journalists; Society of Professional Journalists; and TEGNA, which owns WGRZ.
Read the amicus brief here:
