Weber State Professor Recognized with Freedom of Iinformation Award

Let's just say we're vicariously proud of Dan Schroeder

Big News yesterday:

• Weber State professor recognized with 'freedom of information' award

Let's just say we're vicariously proud of Dan Schroeder, who was smart enough to keep the story alive by continuing to post on Weber County Forum, even whilst the major Utah media took an inexpicable snooze.

Congrats, Dan

Standard-Examiner: Public Records Battle Shows Dirty Political Money, Clean Getaway

Professor Schroeder: "!t’s nice to have some closure on this."

Pursuant to The Utah Supreme Court's August 25, 2015 ruling, Petitioner/Appellant Dan Schroeder is now in possession of the documents "ordered disclosed," in the exceedingly long-running Envision Ogden GRAMA matter. Standard-Examiner reporter Cathy McKitrick provides the story, beneath this lede, "contained in this Dan Schroeder statement sent Tuesday, Oct. 20":

“Records recently released by the Utah Attorney General’s Office clearly show what local activists long suspected — that the mysterious entity Friends of Northern Utah Real Estate, which was used to hide the origin of more than $20,000 in campaign contributions during Ogden’s 2007 municipal election, was operated by Blain Johnson, the local real estate attorney who was elected to the city council in that race.”

Dr. Schroeder's entire October 10 statement, including attachments, is viewable here What an eye-opener, no?:

• AG Records Show Former Ogden Councilman Laundered Envision Ogden Donations

Read Ms. McKitrick's blockbuster followup, folks:

• Public records battle shows dirty political money, clean getaway

Don't neglect the SE reader comments section, wherein  Ogden City Watchdog Professor Schroeder provides a robust series of further detailed factual additions and clarifications.

We're grateful for Dan's herculean efforts in this matter, and we join him in his post litigation assessment:

“The statute of limitations has expired, so [no legal charges] can be brought,” Schroeder said Tuesday, Oct. 20. “But it’s nice to have some closure on this. My goal has always been to get the story out there to anyone who is interested.”

Bravo, Dan Schroeder!

Standard-Examiner: Activist Wins Court Case Over Ogden Campaign Records

To professor Schroeder we extend our thanks and hearty congrats!

Following up on one our longest running Weber County Forum stories, we'll offer our hearty congratulations to Ogden City politicaal activist Dan Schroeder for yeaterday's decisive victory in the Utah Supreme Court:

OGDEN — One Ogden activist refused to take no for an answer in his quest to obtain government records related to political shenanigans that played out in Ogden’s 2007 mayor and city council races.
On Tuesday, Dan Schroeder scored a big win when Utah’s Supreme Court justices ruled in his favor regarding the release of records associated with a fundraising organization called Envision Ogden, former Mayor Matthew Godfrey and two city council hopefuls.
David Reymann, a media law attorney, argued the case, which dealt with Utah’s Government Records Access and Management Act. The defending parties were the Utah Attorney General’s Office and the State Records Committee, which hears GRAMA appeals.

Read the full Cathy McKitrick story. folks:

• Activist wins court case over Ogden campaign records

“Accordingly, we remand to the (Salt Lake City) district court to order disclosure of all documents, with appropriate redactions, and to determine whether Mr. Schroeder is entitled to attorney fees,” the ruling said.

Yesiree, WCF readers, it's been a long haul.  Dr. Schroeder's Envision Ogden issues have been lingering around since 2007.

When asked about his bulldog-like tenacity, Schroeder — a Weber State University physics professor and active member of Utah’s chapter of the Sierra Club — said he wasn’t sure where he acquired that trait.

“It’s a mix of scientific curiosity and a genuine desire to contribute to our community in whatever way I can,” Schroeder said. “You take opportunities as they come up and fall into your niche in the community. That’s what seems to have happened.”

To professor Schroeder we extend our thanks and hearty congrats!

Utah Supreme Court to Hear GRAMA Case on AG Investigation into Ogden Political Group - Updated

A Weber County Forum Tip O' The Hat to the ever-persitent Ogden political watch dog, Dan Schroeder, along with the best of luck, as this long-prolonged matter finally comes up for adjudication in the Utah Supreme Court

Encouraging news via regular Weber County Forum contributor Dan Schroeder :

The Utah Supreme Court will soon hear oral arguments in a four-year-long dispute over records of the Attorney General’s criminal investigation of Envision Ogden, a mysterious political group formed in 2007.

Envision Ogden was organized in early 2007, ostensibly to promote economic development and recreation in Ogden. The group quickly raised over $87,000 in donations, much of it from businesses and other organizations including banks, hospitals, the Ogden-Weber Chamber of Commerce, and the Governor’s Office of Economic Development. Then-mayor Matthew Godfrey solicited most of the major contributions to the group.

Unknown to the donors, however, Envision Ogden then funneled most of its net revenue--over $30,000--to political candidates and to the Utah Republican Party. Over $20,000 of these funds went to two Godfrey-supported city council candidates, who reported that they received the funds not from Envision Ogden but from an even more mysterious, unregistered entity called Friends of Northern Utah Real Estate. Envision Ogden further concealed its political nature by failing to register as a 527 political organization with the IRS until 2008, after its fundraising activities had ceased. (The name “Envision Ogden” may also have been intended to deceive donors, some of whom confused the group with Envision Utah, an unrelated nonprofit organization that promotes long-term urban planning.)

When Envision Ogden’s political nature was discovered in 2009, the Attorney General’s Office and the State Bureau of Investigation opened a criminal investigation into possible felony violations including communications fraud and money laundering. However, the investigation stalled for nearly two years until it was finally closed in March 2011, around the time that the statute of limitations would have expired. No criminal charges were ever filed in the case. Although an investigator interviewed several of Envision Ogden’s donors, there is no evidence that investigators ever contacted Mayor Godfrey or any of the political candidates who received funds from Envision Ogden.

As soon as the investigation was closed, Ogden activist and blogger Dan Schroeder filed a request for the Attorney General’s investigation records, under Utah’s Government Records Access Management Act (GRAMA). The AG responded by providing some records including a two-page report and several email messages sent among its staff, but withheld other records--most notably a collection of financial documents that it had obtained via subpoena from Envision Ogden’s bank.

Schroeder appealed the AG’s decision to withhold the bank records and a few others, and won a partial victory at the State Records Committee in August 2011. Both Schroeder and the AG then appealed this decision to Third District Court, where in October 2012 Judge Keith Kelly ruled in favor of the AG’s decision to withhold the records. Schroeder, now represented by attorneys at Parr Brown Gee & Loveless, then appealed Judge Kelly’s decision to the Utah Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in this case at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, April 1, in the Matheson Courthouse, 450 South State Street, 5th Floor, in Salt Lake City.

The principal legal question before the court is whether GRAMA requires the government to disclose financial records obtained via subpoena in the course of a criminal investigation, even when none of GRAMA’s specific exemptions apply to those records. GRAMA does exempt many records from disclosure, for instance, when disclosure would constitute a clear violation of an individual’s privacy, or when a business would be put at a competitive disadvantage through disclosure of its financial records, or when disclosure would compromise an ongoing investigation. In this case, however, the investigation is over, while the financial records are those of a defunct political organization that has not made any privacy claim and that was already required by federal law to disclose its major financial transactions. The Attorney General argues that the Utah Constitution broadly protects the privacy of financial records even in such cases. Schroeder and his attorneys argue that the constitutional requirement was met when the Attorney General obtained the records through a valid subpoena, and that GRAMA provides no applicable exemptions in this case.

Besides the legal issues, this court's decision in this case will determine how much the public will ever learn about Envision Ogden and the Attorney General's investigation. Although the content of the withheld records is unknown, it is likely that they would shed further light on Envision Ogden's financial transactions, including transactions with the mysterious Friends of Northern Utah Real Estate. The records would also show what information the Attorney General's office had in hand when the decision was made to close the investigation without filing charges.

Copies of the legal briefs filed with the Supreme Court in this case are attached.

• Brief of Appellant Daniel V. Schroeder
• Brief of Appellee Utah Attorney Generals Office
• Reply Brief of Appellant Daniel v. Schroeder

A Weber County Forum Tip O' The Hat to the ever-persistent Ogden City political watch dog, Dan Schroeder, along with the best of luck, as this long-prolonged matter finally comes up for adjudication before the Utah Supreme Court.

Update 3/17/15 3:00 p.m.: Better late than never, the Standard's Cathy McKitrick is all over this story, too:

• Local watchdog's Envision Ogden case reaches Utah Supreme Court

Shurtleff May Have Intervened in Envision Ogden Investigation

Email documents mysterious phone call to investigator.

By Dan Schroeder

Now that we have pretty clear proof that former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff didn't always maintain the highest level of ethical integrity in carrying out his official duties, I thought it might be a good time to dredge up another little incident from the past.

It's just a tidbit, really. A hint. Not enough even to justify a newspaper article, much less hold up in a court of law. But intriguing, nonetheless.

The date was May 20, 2009. At the request of then-representative Neil Hansen, the Attorney General's office had agreed the previous month to look into possible criminal activity by Envision Ogden, a political organization that had helped Mayor Godfrey and two city council candidates (Blain Johnson and Royal Eccles) in the 2007 election, but that had concealed its political purpose from contributors. Scott Reed, head of the AG Criminal Justice Division, would be the main attorney on the case.

Reed didn't initially handle the investigation himself. He passed the job along to the State Bureau of Investigation, which assigned the case to a senior investigator named Jim Vaughn. He in turn delegated most of the work to Special Agent Scott Hansen (no relation to Neil), who interviewed several of Envision Ogden's corporate contributors between May 12 and May 26.

But on the evening of May 20, after most of these interviews had taken place, Hansen received a phone call from someone named Mark that prompted him to email Reed's boss, Deputy AG Kirk Torgensen, the next morning:

From: Scott Hansen
Subject: Envision Ogden
Date: May 21, 2009 7:15:27 AM MDT
To: Kirk Torgensen

I received a phone call from Mark last night inquiring about Envision Ogden. He had received an email or a phone call from someone regarding it. He said he was going to send the information to you. He asked that I get with you about this case.

I told him we had received it from Scott Reed. Maybe you, Scott and myself can get together and strategize on this.

I am open anytime today and next Tuesday looks good too. Just let me know.

So there you have it. Although no last name is mentioned, we can safely conclude that "Mark" refers to Torgensen's immediate boss, Attorney General Shurtleff. But we'll probably never know what Shurtleff said to Hansen during that evening phone call, or which of Envision Ogden's members or contributors contacted Shurtleff, or whether the proposed follow-up meeting between Hansen, Torgensen, and Reed ever took place.

Hansen wound up his interviews five days later, without ever attempting to interview Godfrey, Johnson, or Eccles. Reed decided to close the investigation at the end of June. He re-opened the investigation in September (at the request of Rep. Hansen and myself), but very little further investigating took place before the case was permanently closed in March 2011. By then Vaughn had retired from the SBI and Scott Hansen had also left the agency.

Salt Lake Tribune: Salt Lake City Attorneys Take On Ogden Activist’s Quest for Envision Ogden Records

Citizen activist Schroeder takes his protracted government-records battle all the way to Utah’s Supreme Court

Encouraging news this morning in Dan Schroeder's Envision Ogden GRAMA request matter, as Salt Lake  Tribune reporter Cathy McKitrick reports that "citizen activist Dan Schroeder said he will take his related government-records battle all the way to Utah’s Supreme Court to piece together the whole story on what occurred with Envision Ogden, an organization launched in early 2007 to boost business in Ogden":

• Salt Lake City attorneys take on Ogden activist’s quest for Envision Ogden records

Ms. McKitrick's story goes on to report that "Jeff Hunt, David Reymann and LaShel Shaw — attorneys with Salt Lake City-based Parr Brown Gee and Loveless — recently took on Schroeder’s case and plan to argue the appeal pro bono in the state’s high court."
 
"The case raises some significant issues regarding the intersection between the Utah State Constitution and the Government Records Access and Management Act [GRAMA]," Hunt said of his reasons for hopping onboard.

That's it for now, O Gentle Readers.  We'll continue to follow this story, of course, as the case progresses, in the hope that all essential facts of this case will be ultimately revealed.

Salt Lake Tribune: Court Withholds Envision Ogden Documents

Ogden activist Dan Schroeder hits dead end after long fight

Bad news for Utah government transparency, folks, as the Salt Lake Tribune reports on the latest round in Dan Schroeder's protracted court quest to lift the veil of secrecy concerning the Envision Ogden scandal, pursuant to provisions of the Utah Government Records Access Management Act (GRAMA).

• Court withholds Envision Ogden documents 

Although Trib reporter Cathy McKitrick provides an informative writeup concerning yesterday's disappointing court decision, we'll flesh out this story further, with this explanatory paragraph which we've lifted this morning from Dan's Facebook page:

The judge ruled that most of the disputed records are exempt from GRAMA not due to any specific provision of GRAMA, but rather due to the constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure. Although the AG obtained Envision Ogden's bank records via a valid subpoena, which effectively said the seizure was reasonable for purposes of the investigation, the judge stated that making the records public, outside of the course of a criminal prosecution, would effectively make the seizure unreasonable. Furthermore, he ruled that this constitutional protection outweighs the admittedly valid public interest in learning more about what Envision Ogden did, and in learning more about the AG's investigation. Finally, the judge also ruled that some of the records are protected attorney work product, finding that those records contain evidence of attorneys' mental impressions, even though the State Records Committee found no such evidence and the AG basically described the records' content as factual. The judge did order the release of one two-page document, but from the sound of it, that document is merely the bank's cover sheet certifying that it was complying with the subpoena.

As to the possibility of the taking this adverse decision up to Utah Court of Appeals, Dan adds this clarification: "I have no plans one way or the other regarding a possible appeal."

We'll take that to mean he's keeping his options open.

Needless to say, we'll be keeping a close eye on this story if and/or when it further develops.

Salt Lake Tribune: Envision Ogden Open Records Fight Stalls in Court

Needless to say, a less dedicated plaintiff than Dan Schroeder would have likely fallen by the wayside long ago

The Salt Lake Tribune reports the latest development in the still-festering Envision Ogden scandal, with a Cimaron Neugebauer story providing details concerning yesterday's 3rd District Court hearing, wherein Ogden community activist Dan Schroeder doggedly continued his noble quest, seeking key "smoking gun" documents pursuant to his still-pending GRAMA document production request.  Here's the lede:

More than a year has passed since Ogden activist Dan Schroeder filed a Government Records Access and Management Act request with the Utah Attorney General’s Office seeking documents connected to an alleged campaign finance scandal involving former Ogden Mayor Matthew Godfrey.

Schroeder hoped that a 3rd District Court judge on Thursday would order the A.G.’s Office to release investigative files related to Godfrey’s now defunct Envision Ogden organization, which came under fire in 2009 when allegations of money laundering and fraud involving the group surfaced. But Schroeder’s crusade to learn more about the inner workings of Envision Ogden stalled, when Judge Keith Kelly ruled he didn’t have enough information to decide whether files previously withheld from Schroeder should now be made public.

 Read the full story here:

• Envision Ogden open records fight stalls in court

Notably folks, it's been a ridiculously long frustrating haul. Even Judge Kelly agrees, saying "It shouldn’t take this long to decide an appeal from a GRAMA decision." 

Encouragingly however, Judge Kelly has set this matter for a further evidentiary hearing on Oct. 19.

We've marked our calender folks, and eagerly await to report the final results of what we hope will be a dispository follow-up hearing.

Needless to say, a less dedicated plaintiff other than Dan Schroeder would have likely fallen by the wayside long ago.

Salt Lake Tribune: Ogden Activist Takes His Open-records Fight to Court - Updated

Query: 1) Just who has so much political juice as to kick the A.G.'s office into high gear to protect the Envision Ogden culprits; and, 2) What exactly is in those documents which the government lawyers are working so feverishly to hide?

For those readers closely following Dan Schroeder's Envision Ogden GRAMA Documents Request Saga, we're pleased to highlight the latest news in the matter, via yesterday's Cathy McKitrick/Salt Lake Tribune story:

• Ogden activist takes his open-records fight to court

Both Dr. Schroeder and Mark Shurtleff's Utah Attorney General's Office have filed pleadings with Utah's Third District Court, appealing the April 22, 2011 decision of the State Records Committee, which was for the most part favorable to Dr. Schroeder. Whereas Dr. Schroeder now merely seeks the release of the final few documents which were ruled to be "protected" under that earlier order however, the A.G.'s Office is reportedly hell-bent on a wholesale reversal of the committee's decision, and thus apparently now seeks to block the release of over 300 documents, including the very bank records which could reveal the names of the culprit (or culprits) behind the Friends of Northern Utah Real Estate scam.

This latest pro-secrecy action on the part of the A.G.'s Office flies flagrantly in the face of the intent of the current Utah GRAMA law, which generally favors open records, and invites the two-pronged question: 1) Just who has so much political juice as to kick the A.G.'s office into high gear to protect the Envision Ogden culprits, and 2) What exactly is in those documents which the government lawyers are working so feverishly to hide?

Update 9/23/11 8:00 a.m.: For those readers who'd like to dive a little more deeply into the issues involved in this round of litigation, here are the pleadings which are now on file with the Third District Court:

• Attorney General's Complaint
• Dan Schroeder's Complaint and Attached Exhibits

Update 9/23/11 10:00 a.m.: Not to be outpaced by the Trib, Scott Schwebke provides his own morning version of the story too:

• Ruling on Envision Ogden records release challenged by AG's office

Sunday Morning News Roundup

A few back-burner items worthy of attention on a slow news Sunday

1) Slight Setback in Dan Schroeder's Ongoing Envision Ogden GRAMA Document Request Hunt: It seems like only yesterday that we were whooping it up, cheering what looked like a near-complete victory in Dan Schroeder's seemingly endless Envision Ogden GRAMA document hunt.

Sadly, we learn this morning morning that the legal battle ain't exactly quite over yet, however. Here's the lowdown in Dan's own words:

Just opened my mail and found notice of intent to appeal from AG [Utah Attorney General]. So I won't be getting the Envision Ogden investigation records any time soon. Also this means I have nothing to lose by filing my own appeal. Here we go again...

As far as we're concerned, the behavior of the AG's office in this matter is entirely inexplicable and thoroughly unconscionable. What's with the government's penchant for secrecy? What is the government trying to hide? How would the average citizen fare in a battle like this, in the absence of Dan's deep knowledge of GRAMA law and near superman tenacity, we ask?

Keep the faith, folks. We'll keep the focus on this story as Dan files his own appeal. If the AG's office doesn't already know they have a real "tiger by the tail," it's certain that they'll soon be finding this out.

2) 9/1/11 Mayoral Candidate Question & Answer Session Videos: We've had email inquiries from several WCF readers who've been wondering when the video recording of last Thursday's Ogden City-sponsored (9/1/11) Mayoral Candidate Question & Answer Session would be available for public viewing; and we're delighted to report that the tapes are now conveniently accessible approximately four times per day on Comcast Cable's public access Channel 17. Click the link below to view the programming schedule:

• Ogden / Weber - Broadcast Schedule

Not a subscriber to Comcast Cable? That's Okay. These videos are also viewable on the same times and dates indicated in the above schedule, through through Channel 17's online webcast link below:

• Ogden Channel 17 Online Video Broadcast Feed

Unfortunately these videos are not yet available through Ch17's Video on Demand feature; but for now, we'll take what we can get.

3) Another Upcoming Ogden Mayoral Candidate Event: Here's a quick heads up on another Ogden Municipal Election campaign event, via yesterday's Standard-Examiner story:

• Coffee Party invites Ogden candidates

The SE blurb informs us that only four of the eight mayoral candidates have confirmed their intention to appear at this event; but we're posting this info here (and within our right sidebar election module) for what it's worth.

That's it for now.

Don't let the cat get your tongues.

Update 9/5/11 12:29 a.m.: Lo & Behold, the full Channel 17 September 1, 2011 Ogden Mayoral Candidate Question and Answer Session is now online by demand, via Youtube:

• Mayoral Candidate Question & Answer Session

Salt Lake Tribune: Campbell: Watchdog’s ‘Hobby’ Keeps Ogden On Its Toes

Let your ever-humble blogmeister be the first to say (once again) how extremely proud we native "homeboys (and gals)" are of our adopted "Ogden home town boy," Dan Schroeder!!!

In the aftermath of today' earlier WCF story, here's a fantastic Salt Lake Tribune Op-ed follow-up tribute to WCF's own frequent contributor Dan Schroeder, written by yet another Utah political commentary heavyweight, Former DNews reporter and editor and current BYU Communications Professor Joel Campbell!

• Campbell: Watchdog’s ‘hobby’ keeps Ogden on its toes

Let your ever-humble blogmeister be the first to say (once again) how extremely how proud we native "homeboys (and gals)" are of our adopted "Ogden City home town boy," Dan Schroeder!!!

Salt Lake Tribune: Ogden Watchdog Scores a Win in Envision Ogden Probe

Perhaps Dan S. will chime in here some time soon and mercifully provide the whole lowdown on his future tactics in re this matter

In a comment beneath Wednesday's WCF article, which touched upon the Envision Ogden scandal and the bogus shadow entity Friends of Utah Real Esate (FNURE), Dan Schroeder mentioned that he'd be appearing before the State Records Board for a Thursday hearing:

But we may soon learn more about FNURE. Tomorrow I will appear before the State Records Committee to argue for the release of the last of the records of the Attorney General's investigation into Envision Ogden and FNURE. Among those records should be the canceled checks from the former to the latter. The signatures on the backs of those canceled checks should tell us who controlled FNURE. Will the committee order the release of these records? I don't know.

Sure enough, the Salt Lake Tribune carries a Cathy McKitrick story this morning, reporting on the result of yesterday's hearing, in which Dr. Schroeder reportedly "scored a weak win... in his fight to obtain records from the state Attorney General’s office regarding a closed investigation into Envision Ogden":

• Ogden watchdog scores a win in Envision Ogden probe

Unfortunately, The Records Board didn't order production of everything that Dan had asked for; the Board instead specifically declined to order release of the cancelled check(s) which might have revealed the signatures of the mysterious persons behind the bogus FNURE entity. So it's now unclear whether this is the end of the road for Dan's GRAMA document discovery effort, or whether his next stop will be the local Utah District Courthouse. In that connection however, Professor Schroeder does provide a comment beneath this morning's Trib story which is quite tantalizing:

The hearing was fascinating. The members of the State Records Committee are sharp, and they know GRAMA law far better than the assistant attorney general who argued for withholding the records. The committee correctly rejected every one of his arguments for secrecy. But then, during their deliberations, they found other GRAMA provisions that were more applicable to some of the records. Unfortunately, by then it was too late for me to respond.

Where we disagree is over the scope of the privacy protections for the financial records. I would agree that many parts of these records should be redacted to protect the privacy of Envision Ogden's small donors (such as those who bought tickets to the Salomon Center grand opening). But the large checks from Envision Ogden to FNURE should be released, because GRAMA's privacy provisions apply only to individuals (not organizations or business entities), and federal tax law requires that 527 organizations disclose the recipients of large expenditures. I suspect that if the committee had taken five more minutes to deliberate this issue, they would have realized their error. But they were already way over their allotted time.

Knowing Dan's history of tenacity, particularly with regard to the Envision Ogden matter, we're betting that Dan will soon be off to the local Utah District Courthouse to successfully seek further legal relief.

But with a little luck, and for the time being at least, we're keeping our fingers crossed that Dan will chime in within the lower comments section to provide the lowdown on his future tactics in this matter.

Suffice it to say we'll be standing by for additional Dan S. comments, regarding this legal situation.

Update 9/5/11 12:45 p.m.: Here's the text of the State Records Committee's August 22, 2011 written decision:

• State Records Committee Appeal Decision 2011-12