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    FOIA Request For Autopsy Report

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    Tom Ciesielka
    Letter to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Chicago, Illinois from the Life Legal Defense Foundation.

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    FOIA Request For Autopsy Report

    Uploaded by

    Tom Ciesielka
    988 views2 pages
    Letter to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Chicago, Illinois from the Life Legal Defense Foundation.

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    FOIA Request for Autopsy Report

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    © Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)

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    Letter to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Chicago, Illinois from the Life Legal Defense Foundation.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    988 views2 pages

    FOIA Request For Autopsy Report

    Uploaded by

    Tom Ciesielka
    Letter to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Chicago, Illinois from the Life Legal Defense Foundation.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
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    Dana Cody, Esq. Executive Director Catherine W. Short, Esq.

    Legal Director Mary Riley Administrative Director Allison K. Aranda, Esq. Senior Staff Counsel Board of Directors John R. Streett, Esq. Chairman Dana Cody, Esq. Marcella Tyler Ketelhut Terry L. Thompson, Esq. Colette Wilson, Esq. Anthony E. Wynne, JD Advisory Board The Hon. Steve Baldwin San Diego, California The Rev. Michael R. Carey, OP, JD Colorado Daniel Cathcart, Esq. Los Angeles, California The Hon. William P. Clark Paso Robles, California Raymond Dennehy, PhD. San Francisco, California The Rev. Joseph D. Fessio, SJ San Francisco, California The Hon. Ray Haynes Riverside, California James Hirsen, Esq. Riverside, California The Hon. Howard Kaloogian Los Angeles, California David Llewellyn, Esq. Sacramento, California Anne J. OConnor, Esq. New Jersey Charles E. Rice, Esq. South Bend, Indiana Ben Stein, Esq. West Hollywood, California Andrew Zepeda, Esq. Beverly Hills, California Northern California (Administration) P.O. Box 2105 Napa, California 94558 (707) 2246675 Southern California P.O. Box 1313 Ojai, California 93024 (805) 6401940

    August 3, 2012 Office of Medical Examiner Bureau of Administration 2121 West Harrison Street Chicago, Illinois 60612-3705 312-666-0500 RE: FOIA Request for Autopsy Report

    Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, I am an attorney with the Life Legal Defense Foundation. It has come to my attention that a formal public records request was sent to your office by Cheryl Sullenger requesting the autopsy report concerning the deceased Tonya Reaves (DOD 7-20-12). This request was sent in writing to your agency on July 23, 2012. On July 31, 2012, Ms. Sullenger received a phone call from your office informing her that her request was denied because she did not have family authorization or a subpoena. Illinois law specifically states that all records in the custody or possession of a public body are presumed to be open to inspection or copying. Illinois Compiled Statues Annotated Section 140/1.2. Further, the state of Illinois has not exempted autopsy reports from the public access requirement. To the contrary, in 2010 the Illinois Public Access Counselor reviewed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for autopsy reports in the files of the medical examiner and concluded that, the reports are public records and should be released. Ill. Att'y Gen. Pub. Acc. Op. No. 10-003, issued October 22, 2010. In fact, the FOIA Guide for Law Enforcement published July 12, 2012, by the Attorney Generals Office also specifically states that autopsy reports are public records and should be released. As such, your office has no basis to deny my clients request for the autopsy report involving the deceased Tonya Reaves. I expect your office will immediately comply with Ms. Sullengers lawful request for this public document. If your office does not comply, we will be forced to take legal action pursuant to Illinois Compiled Statues Annotated Section 140/11. It should be noted that your office has already failed to comply with Illinois law in regards to the denial of Ms. Sullengers request. Illinois Compiled Statues Annotated Section 140/9 provides Each public body denying a request for

    LLDF.org

    public records shall notify the requester in writing of the decision to deny the request, the reasons

    LIFE: AT THE HEART OF THE LAW

    for the denial, including a detailed factual basis for the application of any exemption claimed, and the names and titles or positions of each person responsible for the denial. Your notification via telephone violated the statute and has already denied Ms. Sullenger due process of law. Any further delay will be met with legal action. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

    Sincerely,

    Allison K. Aranda, Senior Staff Counsel Life Legal Defense Foundation

    LIFE: AT THE HEART OF THE LAW LLDF.org

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