What do you do when the State Attorney Offices really are the problem?

[The Backlash Cometh]

Here's the scenario: You have good ole boys working in local government and among them are attorneys. When giving counsel to their commissioners and City staff, these attorneys are not dispensing good legal counsel. They're dispensing law that will "protect" their agency from lawsuits. That means stalling or denying public records request, or lying about interpretations of the law, or just ignoring decisions made by the Commissioners to give them plausible deniability that they really didn't know what they were doing. It also protects the attorneys who might, themselves, be caught in a conflict of interest representing someone in their private practice.

This defensive incompetence was usually the purview of the crooked attorneys. Now it looks like the State Attorney Offices are doing it as well. Lake County, Orange-Osceola or Seminole County, different State Attorney Offices, all behaving in the same inexplicable manner. They are hardcore I-4 corridor counties and it isn't uncommon to find them using either incompetent or downright mal-practice interpretation of the laws to discourage newspapers and people from gathering information on local governments. I believe that they think it's their job to cover for the malfeasance in local government, thinking that they're protecting the public taxpayers by stopping citizens from gathering data on the local government that might result in a private lawsuit. The problem is, that they're taking their orders from the very good ole boys who are picking this state like it's their private victory garden.

Any chance that they might be thinking about the public good is washed out by the fact that they are giving cover to some very crooked people.So, what do you do when they stall or obstruct investigations with inadequate reasoning that defies the law? Who is over them that can clean up their ineptitude? Because it doesn't sound like the US Attorney's Office is in any better shape.

[pipoman]

1. Well..

not completely understanding what the problem is because of the, "I have this friend" like, hypothetical situation rant.

That said if this is about open records, there are generally very distinct laws in place for accessing information. Each public office has a public information officer who is bound by law to respond to a properly written request for information. There are also procedures for appealing denials for production of records/information. Most people who have problems with accessing public info, have problems because they either are not requesting the information properly or they haven't educated themselves on what information is/isn't public, or what the statutory procedure is for obtaining public information.

If there is a current legal action, records which normally fall outside the realm of public (employment, health, etc) may be accessible through proper subpoena process.

[The Backlash Cometh]

2. The people that know about these things and are suppose to be advocates for

Public Records Access have failed to impress anybody. The government attorneys and state attorney offices see them as tigers without teeth. In fact, everyone was counting on the State Attorney's Office to enforce the Public Record law. That is their role. And, instead, they decided to assist in the cover-up. There is no other way to interpret their decision because their answers sound like they're coming from a college kid who is pretending to practice the law.

What we need in Florida is consumer advocates that can refer us to a pro bono attorney. I already tried such an advocacy group and they only had one attorney for the entire State of Florida. Yet, if you want justice, you have to pay for it since justice is privatized. You want to beat the good ole boys? You're going to have to put down some serious money to do it. They, on the other hand, have all the taxpayer's money to enforce the law in a manner that suits their culture the best. They are as incompetent as they want to be because there is no one to hold them accountable.

Since this happened to me, I've noticed that all the State Attorney Offices along I-4 are doing exactly the same thing. The way they interpret the law is nothing short of mal-practice. But it has worked for them for so long, discouraging people, that they don't think anything of it. Meanwhile, they get encouragement from crooked attorneys who pat them on the back because their interference will stop people from gathering enough information to sue the local agencies and put an end to the malfeasance.

We're on to them. The only thing now is to convince people who are thinking about moving into Florida how this kind of ineptitude will make them unsafe as residents of this state.

[pipoman]

3. Pro bono is rare

it requires someone to work for free. It doesn't pay for child care, rent, food, car payments, student loans, etc. Nobody goes around looking for butchers to work for free.

That said, some of the most troublesome people to government bureaucrats are people who self educate themselves and work the system. One does not need to be a lawyer to represent themselves in court actions. Filing fees are pretty low. Legal documents must have certain elements, but they can be hand written on scrap paper. Legal cases are public records. One way to begin is to find other cases which are similar to a case you want to bring. Go look at the case files and use the filings in that case as forms for your own. Case filings require action from others, even if they are not perfect. Be prepared for people to treat you poorly...clerks, judges, lawyers, etc...screw them. If your case is dismissed because of filing errors refile correctly. People who do these things are a reality to the system. You will eventually find some level of satisfaction. Going around as a victim because others don't find your cause important enough to spend their lives working on them for you without compensation will get you nowhere and will only make you feel worse...IMHO

[The Backlash Cometh]

4. Don't go there.

When the powers that be can play Catch 22 all they want without being held accountable for breaking their own laws, there is no point representing yourself in court. The whole thing is a scam. I'm just interested in documenting how the law is different for whites and other races and I think I've stumbled on it. They get to hide all their crooked schemes, so statistically, they can claim to be perfect citizens. In reality, we're all getting a double hit from their corrupt culture.

The only way to beat them is to expose their secrets. As long as it's just you and them they can push you around all they want. The court is just one more corrupted place. Judges don't suddenly do their jobs properly unless they know someone important is watching.

At least, that's how it is around here. I am a victim precisely because no one that should be listening, is listening. And that's okay, because that's a story, too. I get to shoot holes in all the advocacy agencies that claim things that are just plain false. I'm just documenting the incredible disconnect. I really don't have anyone representing me politically, which gives me a different way of looking at this country. I think that perspective gives me an edge.

[pipoman]

5. Suit yourself..