Month: September 2019

Sarah Braasch, the Yale Police Dept & Connecticut’s FOIA HS Curriculum

As a skeptic, I like to stick to the facts. If you’ve never heard of Yale student Sarah Braasch or the Napping or Sleeping While Black viral video, here’s a little background.

 

https://skepticreview.com/2019/02/01/sarah-braasch-portrayed-as-racist-cop-caller-at-yale-debuts-youtube-channel/

 

As you may know, the Napping While Black incident took place in the early morning hours of May 8, 2018. Fast forward to the present, where we have Sarah Braasch today embroiled in a battle with Yale to have the Yale Police Department’s body cam footage released to the public via an FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request. Yale University and the Yale Police Department intend to fight this request, so here are the most recent facts in this case.

FACT #1  Yale University has retained a prominent attorney to defend the FOIA request made by Yale student Sarah Braasch

Yale University retains prominent attorney to defend FOIA request made by Yale student Sarah Braasch

 

FACT #2 Yale Police Department refused to release body camera footage requested by The New Haven Independent in May of 2018. 

https://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/yale_wont_release_body_cam_video/

FACT #3 The Connecticut FOIA Commission has developed a teaching curriculum with a lesson plan about their ruling that the Yale Police Department was subject to an FOIA request in 2008. (See page 43 forward)

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/FOI/QuickLinks/HScurricpdf.pdf

FACT #4 Read the final decision ruling the YPD subject to an open records request here:

https://www.state.ct.us/foi/2008FD/20080213/FIC2007-370.htm

Yale University retains prominent attorney to defend FOIA request made by Yale student Sarah Braasch

Sarah Braasch, made unintentionally famous by the “napping while black” incident at Yale University on May 8, 2018, made an FOIA request to the state of Connecticut in hopes that Yale Police Department would release body camera footage of the police interview with Sarah herself only.

Sarah contends that what she said during this interview was not racist in nature, but instead was an attempt to explain the backstory of the situation. She believes the release of the footage will exonerate her of the statements rapidly made by Yale University couching the incident in racist terminology.

The hearing was scheduled for October 3, 2019, but the new attorney had requested a postponement and this postponement has been granted by the State of Connecticut. Braasch had already booked and paid for her travel.

The request for the postponement was made by Aaron Bayer, partner in the law firm Wiggin and Dana. According to Mr. Bayer’s impressive bio, he is “a litigation partner who heads the firm’s Education Practice Group and previously chaired the firm’s Appellate Practice Group.” His complete bio may be found here. https://www.wiggin.com/content/uploads/pdf/aaron-s-bayer.pdf

Mr. Bayer “draws on his experience in positions in higher education and government to advise colleges, universities, private secondary schools, and nonprofit organizations on the complex legal, regulatory, and public relations issues they regularly face.”

What is FOIA? Courtesty United States Government, FOIA.gov

Since 1967, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) has provided the public the right to request access to records from any federal agency. It is often described as the law that keeps citizens in the know about their government. Federal agencies are required to disclose any information requested under the FOIA unless it falls under one of nine exemptions which protect interests such as personal privacy, national security, and law enforcement.

The FOIA also requires agencies to proactively post online certain categories of information, including frequently requested records. As Congress, the President, and the Supreme Court have all recognized, the FOIA is a vital part of our democracy.

What is the Presumption of Openness and Who Issues Guidance to Agencies on the FOIA?

The FOIA provides that when processing requests, agencies should withhold information only if they reasonably foresee that disclosure would harm an interest protected by an exemption, or if disclosure is prohibited by law. Agencies should also consider whether partial disclosure of information is possible whenever they determine that full disclosure is not possible and they should take reasonable steps to segregate and release nonexempt information. The Office of Information Policy at the Department of Justice is responsible for issuing government-wide guidance on the FOIA as part of its responsibilities to encourage all agencies to fully comply with both the letter and the spirit of the FOIA.

Hail Satan? Documentary is an Entertaining Civics Lesson in Separation of Church and State

Official trailer:

I found “Hail Satan?” on Hulu, and it is also streaming on various other services listed here:

http://www.magpictures.com/hailsatan/watch-at-home/

The film follows The Satanic Temple from its inception to its activities today, including a few growing pains along the way.

Simply put, The Satanic Temple is a bunch of Atheists who found standard Atheist organizations to be a bit dull at the same time as the Christian right seemed to be sneaking some questionable practices into law.

One of the more high profile projects has been confronting 10 Commandments monuments installed on government property, including disputes with Oklahoma and Arkansas. To drive home the point that the US is a secular nation, the organization has created a monument named “Baphomet,” and once one religious statue or monument is approved for display on government property, The Satanic Temple applies for a permit to place Baphomet on the property as well, demanding equal treatment under religious freedom laws.

Here’s Baphomet on a visit to the Little Rock, Arkansas State Capitol, where a 10 Commandments monument is also displayed.

All photos courtesy Magnolia Films.

Baphomet was met by angry protesters in Little Rock. Note the sign claiming “blasphemy is not free speech.”

The Satanic Temple members, many dressed in costume, showed up in Little Rock to support the placement of the Baphomet monument.

Lucien Greaves, the star of the show, mastermind and spokesman for The Satanic Temple, is a soft-spoken, intelligent and constitutionally and legally well-informed leader of the organization. When he spoke in Little Rock, he was advised to wear a bullet-proof vest.

The documentary takes an unexpected turn when one of the members who organized the Detroit Chapter went off the rails a bit in a public ceremony and was dismissed from The Satanic Temple all together. It’s an interesting segment in the flim.

The website explains in detail the difference between The Church of Satan and The Satanic Temple, as the two are often confused and have quite different missions. Neither actually believes in Satan, by the way.

https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/what-is-the-difference-between-the-satanic-temple-and-the-church-of-satan

The organization survives on donations and sale of merchandise. They are also active in legal action when necessary.

The film was featured at Sundance and has a 96 percent positive rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes.