YDR, others reach document access settlement with York County Clerk of Courts Dan Byrnes

The York Daily Record and four other news sources have settled a lawsuit against York County Clerk of Courts Dan Byrnes over access to criminal court documents and legal records.

The lawsuit was initially brought against the county in March by local news sources the YDR, WITF, LNP Media Group, The York Dispatch and the Spotlight PA investigative team. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press represented the news organizations in the case.

The news sources alleged the Clerk of Courts, under the leadership of Byrnes, was not providing constitutional access to judicial documents in a timely and complete manner, with days-long delays and unnecessary redactions.

Byrnes had implemented policies that denied the public's right to view documents in the office free of charge and had insisted on the purchase of physical or digital copies of the records at 65 cents per page, far beyond the state limit of 25 cents. He had also implemented a $17 charge per docket and removed computer terminals that gave the public access to records quickly. Byrnes later reduced the cost of copies to the state maximum of 25 cents per page, but many documents requested by journalists were heavily redacted.

"In York County, Pennsylvania, the public's presumptive constitutional right of access to judicial records in criminal cases is routinely violated," according to the suit. "Recently implemented policies and practices of Defendant, the York County Clerk of Courts ... are preventing the press and public from obtaining timely and complete access to judicial documents."

The lawsuit came to a close this week with a settlement that will be implemented over the next month.

The initial lawsuit:York Daily Record sues York County Clerk of Courts Dan Byrnes over access to public records

Byrnes seals homicide records:Why are records in 2 York homicide cases sealed? Clerk of courts won't release judge orders

The settlement requires the Clerk of Courts to establish a public records policy, a publicly available set of rules explaining how to obtain access to records held by the office. It specifies methods, fees, timing and types of documents the office must provide.

The office is also required to implement an internal records policy that specifies what information is to be redacted and what laws apply to the public access of the documents.

This includes removing documents and information that is protected by the 2019 Clean Slate Act, a law that allows the sealing of certain criminal charges.

It also stipulates that the names of people who have been victims of sex trafficking and minors who are victims of sexual or physical abuse are not public record and will be redacted in documents provided to the public.

The newsrooms and Clerk of Courts staff members will also undergo training on access to the court documents within 30 days of the agreement.

“While it’s unfortunate that we had to take legal action here, I’m pleased that we were able to resolve this issue in a way that will assure easier public access to criminal court records without undue redactions by the Clerk of Courts Office,” said Scott Fisher, Central Pennsylvania news director for the USA Today Network. “I’m grateful to the media partners that joined us in this case – and to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press for their diligent work.”

The Clerk of Courts will pay $6,796.52 to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press for legal costs and expenses.

According to a Right to Know request fulfilled Sept. 1, the county had at that point spent $24,283.85 in legal fees defending the case.

The Reporters Committee handled the case for the newsrooms pro bono. Attorneys Paula Knudsen Burke and Sasha Dudding headed up the case.

"We're very encouraged to see a resolution that will bring the York County Clerk of Courts Office in line with the timely and complete access that's required under the state and federal constitutions," Dudding said. "We were happy to work with them to reach this agreement. And we're hopeful that it will resolve a lot of the issues that members of the press and the public have been facing when trying to get access to public judicial records for criminal cases in York."

Stephen McDonald and Sean Summers of CGA Law Firm represented the Clerk of Courts in the case.

"The Clerk of Court’s Office is pleased that the Plaintiffs’ lawsuit has been resolved with all parties to the Settlement Agreement supporting and acknowledging that the Clerk of Courts has a legal and ethical duty to protect the identity of crime victims, particularly minors, as specified in the laws of the Commonwealth of PA," McDonald wrote in a statement on behalf of the Clerk of Courts. "The procedures and policies of the Clerk of Court’s personnel will continue to reflect their adherence to professional practices that serve the media and general public as accorded by law."

According to the settlement, all mandates must be fulfilled by Nov. 16 for the case to be dismissed.

Jack Panyard is a reporter at the York Daily Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Contact him at jpanyard@ydr.com, 717-850-5935 or on Twitter @JackPanyard.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Media settle suit on record access against York County Clerk of Courts