Records Library

This is a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) determination issued on May 27th, 2015 by the Illinois Attorney General Public Access Counselor in response to a request for review submitted by an unnamed individual who had submitted 118 FOIA requests to the University of Illinois over a 12 month period and who argued that their status as new media prevented the U of I from treating them as a recurrent requester.

The PAC had previously determined that the same requester did not qualify as news media in a determination issued three months prior (see 2015 PAC 33323).

The requester provided new information regarding his credentials as news media, but the PAC once again rejected the claim. The PAC argued that nature of the medium used by the requester did not resemble a newspaper, periodical, or a news service.

The PAC determined that the requester did not qualify as news media, and that the U of I had correctly treated the requester as a recurrent requester.

This is a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) determination issued on December 2nd, 2016 by the Illinois Attorney General Public Access Counselor in response to a request for review submitted by an unnamed individual who claimed that their postings on two different websites qualified them as news media for the purposes of FOIA.

The PAC said that the mere establishment of a website and dissemination of criticism is not sufficient to meet the definition of news media. The PAC discussed various court cases that analyze and distinguish postings to a bulletin board type of website vs the creation of journalistic content similar to that of a printed newspaper.

In considering this particular requester’s qualifications as news media, the PAC noted that the websites cited by the requester simply contained links to public records and links to other news publications, but noted that neither website contained original content and the websites did not resemble a newspaper, periodical or other news service.

The PAC determined that the requester did not qualify as news media and that the City of Collinsville had correctly treated the requester as a recurrent requester.

These records were provided by the Urbana School District #116 in response to a FOIA request which asked for “any reports, memos, or test data regarding asbestos and/or air quality in Wiley Elementary school.” The request asked for 2017 until now, but USD #116 seems to have supplied reports going back to 2001.

These records were released by the City of Champaign, Illinois in preparation for a City Council vote to approve $329,587 in funding to pay AGB Investigative Services, Inc. for approximately ten private security personnel to engage patrolling the downtown area for the period from May 25, 2023 through January 1, 2024.

These records were provided by the City of Evanston, Illinois on March 22nd, 2023 in response to a FOIA request which asked for:
“All complaints/petitions/notices received by the City regarding sexual misconduct within the Parks and Recreation Department.
All reports created in the course of the City’s (or their agents) investigation(s) into the allegations of sexual misconduct regarding lakefront employees, and reports regarding the City’s handling of those incidents.”

The first file is about 20MB in size (this file was inexplicably ~180MB in size from Evanston, but Check CU compressed it), so it may take slightly longer to load/download than a typical PDF.

The Illinois Attorney General releases an annual report summarizing the work of the Public Access Counselor’s Office. This report was released on March 13th, 2023 with the following statement:

“In recognition of Sunshine Week, Attorney General Kwame Raoul released the Public Access Counselor Annual Report with details of a sampling of over 3,300 new matters received in 2022. Additionally, Raoul encouraged the public to join Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) officers and public officials in two webinars hosted by the Public Access Counselor (PAC) during Sunshine Week.

The PAC works to increase transparency in Illinois government by resolving disputes regarding public bodies’ compliance with the state’s FOIA and Open Meetings Act (OMA)
The 2022 report also describes how the PAC trained thousands of individuals in seminars related to Illinois’ transparency laws.”

This is a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) non-binding opinion issued by the Illinois Attorney General Public Access Counselor in response to a request for review submitted by Local Labs Media Services. The requester alleged that their request to the Cook County Clerk’s Office should be treated as coming from news media, however the PAC determined that the requester did not qualify as news media since they were simply repackaging data and selling it (at a starting price of $500). The requester therefore was not acting as news media as that term is defined in the FOIA, and that the Cook County Clerk did not need to release certain records because the requester’s purpose was commercial in nature.

This binding opinion was issued by the Illinois Attorney General Public Access Counselor (PAC) on March 24th, 2022. The PAC issued the determination in regards to the release of complaints made against public employees regarding racism, harassment, or discrimination. A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request made by Chicago CBS reporter Timothy McNicholas seeking such complaints was fully denied by the City of Chicago – Department of Human Resources. Chief Deputy Attorney General Brent Stratton determined that the complaints were not exempt under FOIA, and directed the Department to provide the records.

These documents were provided by Parkland College (Champaign, Illinois) in response to a FOIA request asking for, “any and all records which would show the employment activities of Robert Finney.  This includes records showing which classes teaching, duties such as office hours and mentoring, records showing how many students he has, and what activities make up his working hours.”

These documents were provided by Parkland College (Champaign, Illinois) in response to a FOIA request asking for “Any and all records related to the employment of Robert T Finney. Records should include, but not be limited to, job advertisements, job requirements, job descriptions, applications, resumes, references, interview schedules, and correspondence related to Finney’s application and hiring process.”

These documents were provided by the City of Urbana, Illinois in response to a FOIA request which asked for records related to the promotion/appointment of James Cory Koker to Lieutenant on March 8^th, 2021.  The files also contain other records related to the appointment such as related emails and applications by Michael P Cervantes and Zachery Mikalik.

Champaign Human Rights Complaints from 2020 to 03-25-2021

These records were provided in response to a FOIA request submitted to the City of Champaign asking for “All human rights complaints submitted to the City of Champaign in 2020 and 2021”.  The request was submitted in early 2021 so the 2021 portion of the records is only partial.

Assistant City Attorney Jennifer Bannon initially denied the request, but immediately provided the records after a FOIA lawsuit was filed.

These documents were provided by Champaign County Executive Darlene Kloeppel in response to a FOIA request which asked for:

“All records and documents, including emails, regarding the hiring and employment of William Colbrook.”

Kloeppel responded to the FOIA requests with 260 separate PDF files constituting a total of 519 pages.  Check CU combined the separate PDF files into one single document.

These documents were provided by the City of Urbana in response to a FOIA request which asked for:

“Any and all records which show payments and obligations to contractors, companies, or consulting firms made by the City of Urbana and the Urbana Police Department in 2020 and 2021.”

The City produced a 10 page list of expenses from 2020 and part of 2021.  At a glance, the expense list appears to be missing items, such as payments to the Hillard Heintze consulting firm for their review of the Aleyah Lewis arrest, and payments to the law firm Heyl Royster for handling Urbana’s Electoral Board hearings in December 2020.

These documents were provided by the City of Urbana in response to a FOIA request which asked for records related to negotiations the Ward 2 City Council member Erik Sacks claimed he was having with a property developer.  Sacks claimed:

“Thus, there is opportunity for some negotiation between the City and the developer.  To this end and based on feedback I have received from the community, I and Councilperson Maryalice Wu have been working with City staff to request from the developer improvements to the proposed development.  These discussions are ongoing.”

However, the City of Urbana could not locate any records indicating that Erik Sacks was holding any negotiations or discussions with the property developer.

These documents were provided by the City of Urbana in response to a FOIA request which asked for:

“Any and all documents related to the original acquisition of Mr McNeil’s services and which show his status and pay rate as an employee or contractor.  Any and all documents which show how Mr McNeil came to be involved with Urbana’s FOIA process in 2020.  Any and all documents which may show Mr McNeil’s timesheets and billing/invoices/paystubs (the past 3 years should suffice).”

Ross McNeil filled the FOIA request himself, and denied a number records, claiming that those records were “preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, memoranda and other Records in which opinions are expressed…”

These documents were provided by the City of Urbana in response to a FOIA request which asked for “any and all documents related to the initial hiring of Curt Borman, as well as any documents related to his salary during the entire time that he’s worked for the city of Urbana” and “any photos of Curt Borman that the city may possess”.

Curt Borman was hired by the City of Urbana on March 15 of 2007, and was appointed to be Urbana’s FOIA Officer by Mayor Diane Marlin on June 8^th, 2020.

These documents were provided by the Village of Skokie, Illinois.  They show records related to the employment of Curtis Scott Borman as a police officer from January 7, 1988 to January 8, 1998.  Curt Borman is currently employed by the City of Urbana as an Assistant City Attorney, and was appointed by Mayor Diane Marlin to serve as the City’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer on June 8, 2020.

The FOIA request that produce these records was sent on November 4, 2020 and read:

“I am seeking records on the hiring and employment of Curt Borman. My understanding is that he was a police officer for Skokie, but he may have also served other roles. He may have left Skokie around 2007 or earlier. I am requesting any and all records in regards to Borman’s hiring and employment, including salary information, applications, letters of reference, etc… Please include any letters that Skokie may have sent to Borman’s next employer (the City of Urbana, I believe). Please include any complaints that may have been issued against Borman. I am requesting that the documents be submitted electronically by email.”

These documents were provided by the Village of Carpentersville in response to a FOIA request asking for information about the employment of Curt Borman, who currently works for the City of Urbana as an Assistant City Attorney while also serving as the City’s FOIA Officer.  The records reveal that Curt Borman worked as an “Administrative Assistant to the Chief of Police” from January 2004 to March 2007.  Included within the records are numerous letters of praise to Curt Borman from various police department officials, as well as his letter of resignation to the Carpentersville Chief of Police in March 2007 when he acquired his current position at the City of Urbana.

The FOIA request that yielded these documents read:

“I am requesting any and all records in regards to Borman’s hiring and employment, including salary information, applications, letters of reference, etc…  Please include any letters that Carpentersville may have sent to Borman’s next employer (the City of Urbana, I believe).  Please include any complaints that may have been issued against Borman.”

These documents show a number of posts and memos by the City of Urbana in regards to the appointment of a new Council member to the Ward 2 seat left vacant by Eric Jakobsson’s resignation at the end of June 2020.  Though there were four applicants, only two qualified (Julie Laut and Christopher Hansen).  The included 38 page PDF file shows the applications submitted, as well as a number of related emails, including letters of recommendation.

The FOIA request submitted to attain these documents read, “Please send the following records: Any and all documents related to the recent Ward 2 City Council seat appointment process.  This would include all documents related to advertising the position, the selection process, applications that the City of Urbana received, emails and letters related to the appointment process (including from the public), decisions to extend the application deadline, etc…”

The request was labeled “2020-F-470” by Lizabeth Kay Meharry on August 28, 2020, and the documents were emailed on November 6, 2020 by Ross McNeil.  A review of the documents indicates that the City of Urbana very likely omitted numerous records since none of the records show how anyone at the City contemplated or arranged an appointment process or who directed staff to make various website changes.

This is a full document suite concerning Urbana’s new public input rules which were established in October of 2020.  Despite having already exercised her new rules at the September 14^th City Council meeting, Mayor Diane Marlin first brought an ordinance proposal to the Urbana City Council Committee of the Whole on September 21^st, 2020.  Then Marlin brought a modified proposal to the October 5^th, 2020 Committee of the Whole meeting.  Urbana City Council passed an amended version of the 2^nd proposal on October 12^th (against the urging of Urbana residents).  Urbana City Attorney James Simon claimed that a number of PAC Open Meetings Act opinions and court cases supported the City’s speech restrictions.  Those cases were finally cited in the public input rules posted for the October 19^th Urbana City Council meeting, and all of those cases and opinions are included here as well.  The Illinois Attorney General’s Office is currently investigating likely Open Meetings Act violations associated with Urbana’s new public input rules, and James Simon cited the same PAC opinions and court cases in his response letter for that investigation.

These documents show an Urbana Human Rights Complaint against Marion Knight Jr., Tom Betz, Traci E. Nally, Elizabeth Borman, and Elizabeth Hannan.  The complaint alleges that these individuals violated the Urbana Human Rights Ordinance by discriminating against individuals in regards to employment at the City of Urbana.  City Attorney James Simon issued a determination of no jurisdiction, which is also included, along with a copy of the Urbana Human Rights Ordinance.

Here are some basic records on the Kiwane Carrington death.  The one pdf document contains the civil lawsuit filed by Kenesha Wiliams on behalf the estate of Kiwane Carrington, the lawsuit filed by Jeshaun Manning-Carter, a report from the State’s Attorney Julia Rietz, a report to the City Manager by retired police chief Eddie B. Adair and retired judge John P. Freese, and an internal firearms discharge review board report and transcript.

These documents contain the court pleadings for the Tavion Jones-Premo lawsuit against the City of Champaign and police officers Timothy Atteberry, Dane Kaldahl, Arthur Miller, Jordan Hagemann, James Hobson, and Sergeant Brian Rogers.  The lawsuit alleges excessive force, false arrest, failure to intervene, failure to provide medical care, and civil conspiracy.  Also included, the $74,500 settlement document.

These records show the proposed ordinance change to the Urbana City Code which provides rules for public input at meetings.  The ordinance (Ordinance No. 2020-09-049) was authored by City Attorney James Simon at the direction of Mayor Diane Marlin.  For some reason, Marlin did not wish the ordinance text to be publicly visible and, unlike most proposed ordinances, was not included in the meeting agenda packet.  The agenda showing links to the text of other ordinances, but not this one, is also included, as we as the original text of Urbana City Code Section 2-4.

This email and attachment were sent by Mayor Diane Marlin on September 12, 2020 to the Urbana City Council and City Department Heads.  It shows, among other things, Marlin’s plan to regulate and restrict speech at public meetings.  The attached Word document shows the list of people invited to attend Hillard Heintze “stakeholder sessions”.

These documents were released to the Urbana City Council on September 4th in preparation for the Hillard Heintze review to take place at the September 8th City Council meeting.

These records show the City of Urbana violating the FOIA law in regards to fees.  The Illinois Attorney General ruled (PAC 63421) that Urbana illegally attempted to charge the requester $767.97 in fees.  FOIA Officer Curt Borman handled the response and assessed the fees which were ultimately ruled illegal.  More than 4 months after the initial FOIA request, Urbana still has not provided the requested records.

Records related to the hiring of Urbana City Attorney, James L. Simon.

These documents show a FOIA appeal to the PAC and the resulting determination that METCAD violated FOIA.  The original request to METCAD was for documents and audio related to the April 10 2020 arrest of Aleyah Lewis.  METCAD denied the request but the PAC overruled.  However, METCAD never complied with the PAC’s determination.

METCAD serves multiple local public bodies, including Urbana, Champaign, and the U of I.  Mayor Diane Marlin and Chief Bryant Seraphin sit on the METCAD Policy Board.  A copy of the the latest METCAD Policy Board meeting minutes is also included in the document set to show the makeup of the board.  This document is not related to the FOIA appeal.

On July 20th, at an Urbana City Council meeting, James Simon falsely claimed that his personal address was not public information and that if it were released through FOIA he ” would be in court in about 8 minutes to prevent that, and if I was too late to prevent it, I’d be set seeking hefty damages.”  These records from the Champaign County Recorder of Deeds are posted here simply to show that James Simon’s claims about FOIA were wrong.  A full article about this event can be viewed here: https://checkcu.org/calling-simons-bluff/

These documents were release at the onset of the hiring of the Chicago firm Hillard Heintze by the City of Urbana.

These are records from the City of Champaign regarding recently retired Champaign Police Officer James Brian Clark’s application to the University of Illinois Police Department in 2018.