Gov. Ed Rendell should veto legislation that allows Pennsylvania’s coroners to deny the public and the media access to records. Read More…

We find it interesting -- and somewhat darkly humorous -- that Pennsylvania's coroners seem a bit confused as to the nature of their mandate. Given their endless talk of safeguarding the feelings of bereaved families, it's almost like they wanted to be psychologists, instead of doctors, before settling for the most influential medical career that doesn't require a medical degree or professional standards of conduct. Read More…

Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell signed 22 bills into law Tuesday, but left at least one critical piece of legislation untouched for more review — a bill that essentially turns coroners’ reports into state secrets, allowing the release only of minimal information, such as names and causes of death. Read More…

Pennsylvania is on the verge of taking a big step backward when it comes to transparency and openness. On the last day of its lame-duck session, the General Assembly voted to approve changes to the County Code that would eliminate access to virtually all information produced by coroners. Read More…

Just before legislators ended their lame-duck session, they slammed the door on public access to records of a key law enforcement officer: Pennsylvania's county coroners. Gov. Ed Rendell needs to pull out his veto pen to keep the change from becoming law. Read More…

On November 16, 2010, a three-judge panel of the Commonwealth Court held that the Right-to-Know Law (RTKL) does not provide immediate access to the name of a deceased and the manner of death. Hearst Television, Inc. et al. v. Norris et al., 95 C.D. 2010. Read More…

Just over a year old, Pennsylvania's Right to Know Law remains a work in progress. That fact is clearly evident through a court case brought by our colleagues at WGAL-TV. In what should be a clear-cut situation, the television station has been forced to go to the Commonwealth Court in an effort to determine not if a record is public - on that point everyone agrees - but when it should be released.
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A new legal battle could be brewing over a Shippensburg University student's death that already has prompted a court duel over the state's Right to Know Law. Read More…