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Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Ind. Decisions - Deju vu? "IU trustees do not have reveal details of Knight's firing "

The AP is reporting this afternoon:

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) -- Two Indiana University trustees who investigated Bob Knight were acting as attorneys and do not have to reveal details that led to the firing of the former basketball coach, a judge ruled Tuesday.

The decision was a defeat for The Indianapolis Star's five-year-old lawsuit, which contended that IU violated the state's open records law in its refusal to release the unfiltered information related to Knight's dismissal in May 2000.

Attorney Kevin Betz, who represented the Star, said the newspaper was considering its legal options.

Special Judge Jane Craney of Morgan County ruled that the records were exempt from the state's Access to Public Records Act because they were "work product" protected by attorney-client privilege.

The ILB thought she had read this all before. The next part of the AP story explains why.
The ruling echoed the argument made in August 2005 in testimony by former IU President Myles Brand, now president of the NCAA.

If Craney had decided that Fred Eichhorn and John Walda were acting as trustees during the investigation, the information they gathered could have been made public. * * *

The investigation looked into allegations against Knight by former player Neil Reed. Reed claimed in a television interview that Knight choked him in practice, ordered Brand out of Assembly Hall and waved soiled toilet paper at players.

Craney first ruled in favor of IU, but the Indiana Court of Appeals said the Reed documents should be disclosed if Walda and Eichhorn acted as trustees when they investigated.

The Court of Appeals decisions, from June 2, 2006, is James R. Dillman, et al v. Trustees of Indiana University. See the ILB entry here.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on August 29, 2006 05:17 PM
Posted to Ind. Trial Ct. Decisions