NCGOP Chairman Harnett Sends Letter to Roy Cooper Demanding Action On Public Records | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Press Release:

127 Days Later, Roy Cooper Continues To Stonewall NCGOP

    Raleigh, N.C.     NCGOP Chairman Hasan Harnett today sent a letter to Attorney General Roy Cooper demanding he complies with the state public records law and begin releasing documents requested by the North Carolina Republican Party regarding his 14-year record as attorney general. If his office doesn't begin releasing responsive documents within 7 business days, the North Carolina Republican Party will be forced to pursue legal action to force his compliance with the law.

    Click here to download a copy of the letter.

    "Roy Cooper should comply with the law he swore an oath to uphold as North Carolina's chief law enforcement officer," said Chairman Harnett. "It shouldn't take legal action for him to comply with the law. But for more than 127 days to pass without any meaningful response from his office despite repeated calls and emails from our team, it is clear he is stonewalling the North Carolina people and is shirking his responsibilities."

    The North Carolina Republican Party had previously requested a meeting with Cooper's office to discuss its public records request and his compliance with the law, but received no response.

    On March 16, 2015, Roy Cooper told reporters that he planned on fulfilling NCGOP's request. Click here to watch video of his remarks, where he said, "We provide public records to those who ask for them."

    However, more than 127 days later, Roy Cooper has yet to provide a substantive response to our request, aside from printing out press releases and official opinions already publicly available on his official website.

    Media reports show that Attorney General Roy Cooper has a history of a lack of transparency. Attorney General Roy Cooper defended Governor Easley against a lawsuit brought by media organizations across North Carolina regarding the Easley administration's illegal practice of destroying emails to avoid North Carolina's public record law. News reports and editorial pages have also criticized Cooper for his hypocrisy and lackluster commitment to open government and transparency, including saying, "Cooper has one of state government's most restrictive media policies."

    NCGOP previously launched a web video, which pointed out Roy Cooper's hypocrisy on public records and open government.

    To track the number of days Roy Cooper has stonewalled the people of North Carolina by refusing to release these documents, NCGOP launched the micro website "Stonewall Cooper," where members of the public can see a real-time counter as well as download copies of NCGOP's public records requests. The site, which will remain live until Roy Cooper fully complies with the law, can be viewed here: http://www.ncgop.org/stonewall/

    Background:

    News & Observer reports that "Cooper has one of state government's most restrictive media policies."

        •  "Cooper has one of state government's most restrictive media policies." (Joseph Neff, "For the attorney general, mum's the word," Raleigh News & Observer, 6/1/2008)

    Media Blasted Attorney General Roy Cooper For Hypocrisy and Lackluster Commitment To Open Government And Transparency

        •  "Both Gov. Mike Easley and Attorney General Roy Cooper can give a heck of a speech about open records, open meetings and transparency in government. It all sounds quite promising. But when it comes time to producing information that belongs to the taxpayers who provide the bulk of the state's $20 billion-plus annual budget, the promise of transparency becomes murky, bordering on opaque." (Editorial: "More transparency needed at the state level of public records," The Charlotte Observer, 12/23/2008)

        •  "Why do the governor and the attorney general apparently want this information kept confidential? Is there something they do not want the public to see? Could information in the records somehow be embarrassing to high-ranking current or former officials? What's the big deal about looking at the number of hours a public employee worked?" (Editorial: "The whole story," Raleigh News & Observer, 9/25/2004)

        •  "It's curious, and disappointing, that publicly elected officials sometimes seem to fail to understand the importance of full disclosure of information when the public's business is done and the public's money is spent" (Editorial: "The whole story," Raleigh News & Observer, 9/25/2004)

    Attorney General Roy Cooper Also Blasted For "Dragging His Feet" On Public Records Relating To Mismanagement At The State Bureau Of Investigation

        •  "Last week, we wrote an article on how Attorney General Roy Cooper, a champion of open records, has been dragging his feet in releasing public records about the embattled State Bureau of Investigation." (Joe Neff, "AG: One Day The Records Will Come," The News & Observer, 11/18/2010)

    Attorney General Roy Cooper Defended Governor Mike Easley And His Administration Against Lawsuit Brought By Media Outlets Regarding Deleted Email Scandal (Deposition of Reuben Young, page 2, 8/5/2010)

        •  "Media organizations from across North Carolina sued Gov. Mike Easley on Monday, accusing his administration of violating the state's public records law through the "systematic deletion, destruction or concealment" of e-mail messages." (Gary D. Robertson, "Media Outlets Sue N.C. Gov. Over E-Mails," The Associated Press, 4/15/2008)

        •  "The N&O (News & Observer) reported that at least three public information officers did delete e­mail as they had been instructed at a May 29, 2007, meeting with Easley's press secretary. The paper obtained several officers' notes from the meeting under the state's public records law. Several of the notes stated that officers were to delete e­mails to and from the governor's office every day... The allegation that public information officers had been instructed to delete e­mails ­ which the governor's office and chief legal counsel initially denied ­ surfaced March 4 after Easley approved the firing of the head of the public information office at the Department of Health and Human Services, The N&O said." (Nikki Swartz, "Media Sue N.C. Governor Over E­mails," Information Management Journal, 7/1/2008)

    Roy Cooper "Believed The Lawsuit Should Be Settled," Attempted To Settle The Easley Deleted Emails Lawsuit For $20,000

        •  Cooper attempted to settle the lawsuit for $20,000 (Rick Henderson, "Depositions Could Pose Legal Peril for Easley Aides," Carolina Journal, 2/4/2010)

        •  "(Deputy Attorney General) Kelley also said that Attorney General Roy Cooper 'has always indicated to me that he believed the lawsuit should be settled.'" (Rick Henderson, "Depositions Could Pose Legal Peril for Easley Aides," Carolina Journal, 2/4/2010)

    Roy Cooper Asked Judge To Dismiss Lawsuit Against Mike Easley For Destroyed Public Records

        •  "Attorney General Roy Cooper has asked a state judge to dismiss a lawsuit against embattled former Gov. Mike Easley and several top officials from his administration, arguing that because Easley is no longer in office, and others named in the suit no longer hold the jobs they did with Easley, they cannot be held liable for alleged violations of the state's open records law." (Rick Henderson, "Cooper: Easley's lawbreaking doesn't matter," Carolina Journal, 12/9/2009)

        •  "Attorneys for the media organizations blasted Cooper. Noting that "North Carolina's appellate courts repeatedly have admonished that the Public Records Law is to be construed liberally and the exceptions to it interpreted narrowly," the attorneys found Cooper's argument about standing odd, since the Public Records Law allows "any person" to sue if the government denies a records request." (Rick Henderson, "Cooper: Easley's lawbreaking doesn't matter," Carolina Journal, 12/9/2009)

        •  "Attorney General Roy Cooper argued last year that even if Easley's e-mail policies violated the open records law, the media groups had no standing to sue because Easley was no longer in office. Wake County Superior Court Judge Howard Manning rejected that argument and ordered the depositions. It is unclear whether Manning will demand further depositions or when a trial might be scheduled. Gov. Bev Perdue - with Cooper's endorsement - has attempted to settle the lawsuit." (Rick Henderson, "Easley Attorney Did Not Notice Senders or Recipients of E-mail Records," Carolina Journal, 9/22/2010)

    Contact: Ricky Diaz
            ricky.diaz@ncgop.org