A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was submitted to the Richland County Sheriff's Office in Illinois on January 7, 2025. The request, sent by East Central Reporter, a media organization dedicated to comprehensive and accurate news coverage on local governmental affairs, sought specific arrest records from the year 2024.
The detailed information requested included a list of all arrests from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024. This list was asked to contain fields such as the arrestee's name, date of arrest, gender, race, date of birth and the crime committed.
As members of East Central Reporter, we believe access to public records is vital for us to fulfill our professional responsibilities. These responsibilities include holding public institutions accountable and providing transparency to the public. Given our role in disseminating information, we believe we are eligible for a fee waiver as media professionals.
The Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140) allows for such requests and we have expressed our preference for these records in an electronic format for ease of access and distribution. We eagerly await a response from the Richland County Sheriff's Office regarding this request.
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