05/12/08 - We Are Paying Town Attorney John Wayne Fox $12,500 A Month To Fight A $100 Ticket That Jim Lash Got And Deserved

In this envelope: lots of wasted taxpayer dollars

Quotes:

"But what's worse is they feel that they can continue to skirt FOI and occasionally pay a small penalty or even no penalty."

"I used to think that they would clean up their act after several adverse decisions, and to some degree they have made progress in making important data-sets widely available in electronic form. Now I sense they will only go through the motions and will not develop a sense of 'trustees of the public's records' until someone loses elections over legal costs or a major decision hits home."

Headline:

Greenwich officials shriek about security in illegally denying a Freedom of Information request for aerial shots of the town

Story:

It's a Manse World

Fairfield Weekly

By Erin Lynch

In an effort to overturn a state Freedom of Information Commission ruling, Greenwich is appealing a 2006 decision that not only found the town was in violation of the law, but could save a former First Selectman from paying a $100 fine. Question: at what cost to taxpayers?

The FOI Commission slapped the former selectman, Jim Lash, with the fine in 2006 after it ruled that he withheld public documents from Greenwich resident Stephen Whitaker. The town is appealing the decision in New Britain Superior Court, and oral arguments for the case are expected to begin next month....

...According to Fox, it's "virtually impossible to tell" how much the municipality has spent fighting the FOI disputes, since the attorneys who work for the town are under salary....

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