Border Belt Reporting v. Madden

Case Number: 24-CVS-125

Court: General Court of Justice, Superior Court Division, Columbus County, North Carolina

Clients: Border Belt Reporting, Inc. (Border Belt Independent), North Carolina Long Form Magazine, Inc. (The Assembly)

Complaint Filed: Sept. 13, 2024

Background: Starting in October 2022, Border Belt Independent, a nonprofit newsroom in North Carolina, submitted the first of several public records requests to officials in Columbus County seeking access to a range of records, including email communications of certain county employees, legal complaints alleging misconduct at the county Sheriff’s Office, and any subpoenas, search warrants, and other requests the Sheriff’s Office has received from state or federal authorities.

Over the course of two years, county officials failed to produce most of the requested records. Some requests were only partially satisfied, while others were ignored or improperly denied.

Through ProJourn, Border Belt Independent and The Assembly, another North Carolina-based newsroom, connected with attorneys from McGuireWoods LLP, who joined forces with Reporters Committee Staff Attorney Beth Soja to file this lawsuit against the county manager and sheriff of Columbus County, alleging violations of the North Carolina Public Records Law. Among other things, the complaint asks the court to order the county to turn over the requested records and to require the county to fulfill future public records requests “as promptly as possible.”

From the Lawsuit: “Plaintiffs and their counsel have spent the last two years patiently giving Defendants every opportunity to comply with the Public Records Law and fulfill the Requests, and Defendants’ continued flagrant disregard for their obligations to the public … flies in the face of the North Carolina Public Records Law,” attorneys from the Reporters Committee and McGuireWoods LLP wrote in the complaint on behalf of the two newsrooms.

From the Clients: In a joint story about the lawsuit, Border Belt Independent and The Assembly explained that the records they are seeking to access are related to misconduct allegations against the Columbus County sheriff and some of his deputies.

Filings: 
2024-09-13: Complaint and petition for access to public records