911 calls

A Pennsylvania appeals court held Wednesday that the destination addresses -- or nearby cross streets -- linked with 911 time response reports must be released under state public records laws. The ruling in York County v. Pennsylvania Office of Open Records overturns a lower court decision that held that the state Office of Open Records was wrong to order the addresses released.

Alabama governor Bob Riley signed legislation into law Tuesday that exempts 911 recordings from being released to the public under the state's public-records laws,  and instead requires a court order to compel their disclosure.

Under the new law, in order for a court to order the release of 911 audio tapes, it must find that the public's interest in disclosure outweighs the privacy interest of the person making the call, The Associated Press reported.

The Alabama Senate passed a bill last week that would make the audio recordings of 911 calls exempt from state open records laws, the Florence Times Daily reported.

H.B. 159 was sent to Gov. Bob Riley for signing on April 14, 2010.

A measure to make all emergency dispatcher recordings private in Florida was sidelined on Monday when a state legislator revoked his support, The Miami Herald reported.

When the bill was approved by an initial House committee last week, it had the support of House Speaker Larry Cretul. Cretful then decided to "take a breather on the issue" after speaking with colleagues and media representatives. His decision came on the first day of national Sunshine Week.

A decade ago, reporters could expect to have access to 911 calls to file accurate stories, gain insight into crimes and monitor emergency response time -- but more and more states are pushing for that to change.

Alabama, Ohio, Wisconsin and Florida are among the states that have proposed legislation to limit the media's access to emergency-call recordings. The specifics of the bills are different but the intentions are the same. Open-government advocates say the trend is a worrying shift away from transparency.

Two Ohio state senators have proposed a bill that would prohibit the broadcasting of 911 telephone calls and levy a $10,000 fine for infractions.

The Society of Professional Journalists wrote a letter to the bill co-sponsors urging them to reconsider the proposed measure, saying it would diminish the media's ability to report on breaking events.