Lawsuit against Walters, Department of Education seeks transparency

Democracy dies in darkness. Keeping the public’s business public. Sunshine is the best disinfectant.

You’ve heard the transparency catchphrases. Here’s how it plays out in real life.

Oklahoma Watch and reporter Jennifer Palmer filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education and Superintendent Ryan Walters last week, alleging a violation of Oklahoma’s Open Records Act.

In April, Palmer requested a copy of Kourtney Heard’s resignation letter. Heard worked for the department for about 13 months after a lengthy career as a criminologist with the State Bureau of Investigation. She quit about the time that Walters hired Matt Mohler as the agency’s new chief of staff, and that seemed like it might be more than coincidental.

Sometimes, employees use their departure letter as a platform to express their real reasons for moving on and it’s never because the work was too hard or they didn’t have a good enough parking space. Sometimes, they just say, “I quit.” There’s no way to know without reading the letter.

Palmer has been investigating a disturbing trend at the Education Department. Walters has hired multiple people, including Mohler, who are from out of state and have little or no public education experience. So why does Walters want them? They bring a different skill set to the table: each has a résumé chock-full of political campaign experience, and there’s an election next year.

That might also be tied to another record request Palmer made months ago, when she asked for a record of Chief Policy Advisor Matt Langston’s key card swipes, which would show when he entered the agency’s headquarters.

That request was denied, too. The Open Records Act makes it clear that public agency records are presumed to be open for public inspection at any time, unless there is a specific provision in the law providing an exemption.

The Department of Education applied exemptions for those denials that defy common sense. They cited an anti-terrorism clause in denying the key card records, claiming it was top-secret security info. But it’s the front door of a public building; anyone with a notebook and some patience could record the same information by sitting in the parking lot.

There is an exemption regarding personnel records, including resignation letters, but it only applies when an active personnel investigation is underway. That’s what the department used to deny the request for Heard’s letter, even though no investigation has been cited.

Enter Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press attorney Leslie Briggs, who filed the petition asking the court to enforce the law.

“Let the people know the facts,” Abraham Lincoln said, “and the country will be safe.”