08/04/2025
šØ Mesa Is now routing all my public records requests through legal & only one newer staff member is handling them.
I want the public to understand whatās happening behind the scenes.
For over a month, Iāve been submitting legitimate public records requests to the City of Mesa. These requests are not random or excessive. They are targeted and precise, focused on documented issues like air quality testing, mold complaints, whistleblower retaliation, ADA violations, and long-standing public health concerns at the Red Mountain Branch Library. These are matters of serious public interest, involving taxpayer-funded buildings and potential violations of both safety standards and disability rights.
In response, the City has taken an extraordinary and revealing step. All of my requests are now being routed directly through their Legal Department. Not only that, but the City has assigned only one individual to process and release the records. Thatās rightāone person is now responsible for filtering everything I request, under legal supervision.
This is not standard procedure. Itās not how a city that values transparency operates. Instead, it appears to be a strategic move to control what gets released, delay the process, and manage risk from a legal standpoint rather than fulfill their duty to the public. It creates a bottleneck where one person, guided by legal interests, decides what I get to see and when.
Letās be clear: Arizonaās public records law requires timely and good-faith responses. It does not allow public agencies to stall, restrict, or withhold information simply because they fear legal consequences. Routing every single request through the legal department is not about upholding the law. Itās about controlling damage, managing optics, and limiting what the public is allowed to know.
This tactic tells me a lot. It tells me they see my questions as a threatānot because theyāre unfounded, but because they hit too close to the truth. If the City had nothing to hide, there would be no need to involve Legal in every request or centralize control in the hands of one staffer. They would simply provide the records and let the facts speak for themselves.
Iām documenting every step. Iām keeping a full log of request dates, response times, redactions, and communication patterns. I will not be intimidated or discouraged by legal tactics. I will not stop requesting access to public information that belongs to the community.
Public records are not the private property of a city attorneyās office. They are a public trust. I will keep shining a light on this processāone request, one report, one redacted file at a time.
