| RESPONSE TO READERS QUESTIONS
By Bob Weaver
Since the Hur Herald went on-line in 1999 we have published a monthly Magistrates court report of felonies, misdemeanors and citations issued by law enforcement in Calhoun County.
We have also published monthly reports of how magistrates ruled in those cases.
The magistrate court reports have not been published since October, 2014.
The Calhoun magistrates have been helpful in providing that information to the public, generating the public information.
The Herald has exercised a policy of reporting all cases, without exclusions.
Magistrate court reports have now been transferred to a new computerized system, involving over 20 counties, which requires any person wanting that information to go in-person to a public information computer in a Magistrate Clerk's office.
The system is user friendly if a person wants to look up a single case, but beyond that, to compile weekly or monthly reports, the system becomes difficult, particularly to acquire the outcomes of magistrate court decisions.
It requires laboriously sorting through files and writing down the information in long-hand, the system does not allow an electronic print-out or transfer of the information by e-mail from the secured site.
"I am finding I am spending more time, and getting less info, from this system than the old one," according to a reporter who has been trying to access information.
Because of the difficulty of obtaining the public information, the Hur Herald will no longer be able to publish such information, felonies, misdemeanors, citations, or magistrates rulings.
Unfortunately, law enforcement in Calhoun will not generally release public information regarding crimes or incidents in the county, commonly published in state and county newspapers as a "Police Blotter."
When a person is incarcerated, the case is available, or if it is sent to Calhoun Circuit Court.
Magistrates offices do hard copy print outs of cases of criminal complaints for 25 cents a sheet, or will FAX a criminal complaint for $2 a page, but you must know about the specific case.
During January, in getting information from other counties, it has cost the Hur Herald about $40 for faxing.
The Herald is filing a complaint with the WV Supreme Court regarding the public information issue.
Unfortunately, the new system seems to join an ongoing trend in West Virginia to deny easy access under the state's public information code.
Following a study a few years ago regarding access to public information, in the state's 55 counties the Associated Press gave an "F" to the West Virginia State Police and county school systems.
We are issuing a "D" to the state Magistrate Court's computer system. Hopefully, access will improve and we can continue to publish.
We appreciate the long-time efforts of the Calhoun Magistrates Court in providing the information.
See 'YA GOT IT ALL WRONG' - Hur Herald Foibles, Challenges And Rewards, "Communist" Mary Ann Barrows Remembered
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