Newspaper removed them and their crimes information online

[vxcc]

What is the name of your state?

I pulled up a past acquaintances name online in the other state. It seems the news paper section was removed. Google only shows partial information that the past acquaintance had been charged for vandalism and entering private property. Would that be a foia I request from the newspaper? And how can that information be removed so quickly after a month or two? I thought crimes stay published? Did they have the court remove it online? I'm glad I didn't keep in touch with them. I knew them from my college days.

 

[Zigner]

What US state?
In the US, FOIA only applies to governmental entities. Google and newspapers are not governmental entities.
If you're glad you didn't keep in touch, why bother looking them up now? You're better off without them in your life. There's no reason to be nosey.

 

[AlmostThere]

If you want to see it in print, you can start at your public library, or contact the newspaper to buy the back issue.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state?

I pulled up a past acquaintances name online in the other state. It seems the news paper section was removed. Google only shows partial information that the past acquaintance had been charged for vandalism and entering private property. Would that be a foia I request from the newspaper? And how can that information be removed so quickly after a month or two? I thought crimes stay published? Did they have the court remove it online? I'm glad I didn't keep in touch with them. I knew them from my college days.

I agree with “Almost There” that you can search your local public library’s database for old newspapers. Many newspapers also have their own databases where past editions can be accessed. You might want to start your search by contacting the newspaper.

You of course will need the name of the paper, the date (or approximate date) of publication to narrow your search, and it helps to have the name of the article or at least key words from the article (the name of your acquaintance could be enough).

If you are looking for information on a crime or crimes your acquaintance committed, you could also make an FOI request of the arresting/charging agency or any other entity that might have custody of criminal records (e.g., law enforcement, courts, correctional facilities). Again, you will want to/need to narrow your search as much as possible.

 

[Taxing Matters]

What is the name of your state?
Would that be a foia I request from the newspaper?

The federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) only applies to information requests submitted to federal government executive agencies, like the FBI, EPA, etc. Most states also have open records laws for information from state and local agencies. Even with requests to government agencies responses to requests for information from an agency for copies of its records about particular persons are likely to either be refused entirely or will be heavily redacted as a result of federal privacy laws.

None of these open records laws applies to information held by private entities like newspapers. They are free to put up as much or as little of their content online as they want.

And how can that information be removed so quickly after a month or two? I thought crimes stay published? Did they have the court remove it online? I'm glad I didn't keep in touch with them. I knew them from my college days.

That's likely the result of the newspaper's policy on how long certain kinds of articles remain online. State open records laws don't dictate to private news organizations what information from its print edition has to be put online, how long it must stay there, or when it must be removed. Such laws would infringe on the newspapers free speech rights. In general courts don't act fast enough to have ordered that information removed so quickly, so even if there was no freedom of speech problem the fact that it went offline so fast suggests it was not due to a court order. Courts don't typically act that fast in deciding cases. You may ask the newspaper about what articles they put up and for how long and see what kind of answer you get. You also may try asking for a reprint of the article, though the newspaper is likely to charge for it if it provides that option.

 

[bcr229]

Some states and counties make court case files available through online portals, especially if the cases are recent or ongoing, so you can check to see if that's the case for the jurisdiction where your acquaintance is being prosecuted.

 

[quincy]

vxcc, if you tell us the name of the state involved, we can provide you with more specific information. I probably can give you a pretty good “how-to” if you give the name of the newspaper.

 

[vxcc]

The Mountain Press

 

[quincy]

The Mountain Press

In Tennessee?

The Mountain Press archives:
https://themountainpress.newsbank.com

 

[zddoodah]

I pulled up a past acquaintances name online in the other state.

What does "the other state" mean?

It seems the news paper section was removed.

Huh?

Google only shows partial information that the past acquaintance had been charged for vandalism and entering private property.

Google is a search engine. Not sure what this means.

Would that be a foia I request from the newspaper?

"FOIA" typically refers to the Freedom of Information Act. It is a federal law that allows requests for information maintained by agencies of the federal government. Some states have a version of FOIA, which applies to state agencies. Neither FOIA nor any state version applies to private businesses.

Did they have the court remove it online?

I'm not sure who they are. I think what you're basically saying is that, at some point, you found some information online that you can no longer find. That doesn't raise any legal issue.

 

[quincy]

What does "the other state" mean? ...

The other state is (apparently) Tennessee.

States have open records acts that are comparable to the Freedom of Information Act. In Tennessee, it is called the Tennessee Public Records Act. Here is a link to frequently asked questions about the Act and what information is available to the public:

https://comptroller.tn.gov/office-functions/open-records-counsel/open-meetings/frequently-asked-questions/tennessee-public-records-act-faqs.html

 

[Zigner]

The other state is (apparently) Tennessee.

States have open records acts that are comparable to the Freedom of Information Act. In Tennessee, it is called the Tennessee Public Records Act. Here is a link to frequently asked questions about the Act and what information is available to the public:

https://comptroller.tn.gov/office-functions/open-records-counsel/open-meetings/frequently-asked-questions/tennessee-public-records-act-faqs.html

It still doesn't apply to private entities.

 

[quincy]

It still doesn't apply to private entities.

Right. The question arises if vxcc wants to access state police or court records relating to his acquaintance’s state crime(s).

 

[vxcc]

Yes and if as the newspaper shows at least the name of the writer that penned the crime reports for that year, day. Would he give me a copy of that section for free?

And the newspaper online showed briefly " county jail". So likely could request a report from the county by mail?

 

[vxcc]

But usually newspapers have shown names if not pictures of the perp and a description of the crime for several months, even years. But maybe the dude somehow got the courts to remove his name from online?

I don't care about the dude. I just wanted to see his crimes. Because he was always laughing at other people and their crimes. I just was curious just how stupid they were. They lived off their parents bank account and always talked about becoming a priest and was worried they would fondle children. Now the dude has a child. And he was worried about his father being abusive to his kid. Since the crime was vandalism and property invasion from parts of Google search showing briefly just that. The dude is a real mess for sure. I just wanted to have a laugh at their stupidity.