University of Kentucky provides student newspaper with public records after judge’s order
Republished from Kentucky Lantern
The Kentucky Kernel, the student newspaper at the University of Kentucky, said the university has provided it with requested public records after a court order.
In a Wednesday story, the newspaper reported UK provided documents a student editor requested following an alleged rape in one of the campus’ dorms in September. The Kernel sought access to records of all non-student guests who signed into the dorm on Sept. 20 following multiple reports of sexual assault on campus during the fall semester.
UK initially denied the newspaper’s open records request, arguing the documents were protected by personal privacy exemptions. The Kernel filed a lawsuit against UK in Fayette Circuit Court to gain access to the records.
Judge Thomas L. Travis ruled last month that UK must provide the records to the Kernel that show when the alleged perpetrator in the September incident signed into and out of the dorm. Other names of students and guests could be redacted from the records, the judge said.
“We complied with the Court’s ruling,” UK spokesperson Jay Blanton said in a statement to the Kentucky Lantern. “We are pleased that the Court recognized the need to redact ‘so as to account for legitimate privacy concerns associated with disclosure of the names of both ‘guests’ and ‘hosts’ alike.’ Throughout this litigation, the university has insisted that it must protect the privacy of student residents and their guests.”
Michael Abate, who frequently represents Kentucky media outlets in open government lawsuits, represented the Kernel in the case.
“We’re very pleased that the court ruled these records had to be released and we’re glad to finally have them,” Abate told the Kernel. “We don’t understand why the university fought so hard to keep this information from the public, but we do think that it raises some questions as to whether the visitor policy in the dorms is being consistently and strictly enforced.”
Abbey Cutrer, the Kernel’s editor in chief who requested the records from UK, previously told the Lantern that the records could shine light on whether the university was following its protocols for residence hall security.
UK and the Kernel have previously duked it over access to public records. In 2021, the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled in favor of the newspaper which sought records from UK regarding a sexual misconduct case involving a former professor. That lawsuit lasted five years.
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