Court orders open records in Gibbons gun permit case

By Cy Ryan

Friday, July 2, 2010 | 11:02 a.m.

CARSON CITY – The Nevada Supreme Court has ruled that some records are public in the suspension or revocation of the concealed weapons permit of Gov. Jim Gibbons.

The court said, however, some information may be confidential and can be eliminated from records of the investigation and disciplinary action.

In a unanimous decision written by Justice James Hardesty, the court said, “We conclude that the identity of the permittee of a concealed firearms permit, and any post-permit records of investigation, suspension or revocation, are not declared explicit to be confidential” under the law.

But the court said these post-permit records may contain information that is confidential under the law and can be removed from the report before it is made public.

It ordered Washoe District Judge Janet Berry to examine the records to determine what information should be redacted from the post investigation.

In March 2008, the Reno Gazette-Journal received information that Washoe County Sheriff Mike Haley had suspended or revoked a concealed weapons permit of the governor.

The court said, “Allegedly, the suspension or revocation was based on inaccuracies in the application that Governor Gibbons submitted.” The newspaper started publishing stories about the action of the sheriff and asked for all records on the post investigation to be made public.

The sheriff refused, arguing the law makes these records confidential.

The court said the application for the permit was confidential but actions taken after that are open to the public with certain exceptions.

Hardesty said the Supreme Court presumes all public records are open to disclosure unless the Legislature creates an exemption. “In this case the law is silent whether the name of the permittee and records generated as part of an investigation, suspension or revocation of the permit are confidential.”

The sheriff argued that the section in the law making the application for a gun permit confidential extended to all the records generated, including any disciplinary action.

The sheriff argued that if permit records were open to the public, these persons would be at risk because potential attackers would know that they were armed, or may burglarize their homes to steal their weapons.

The court said the sheriff failed to present any evidence that Gibbons would be subjected to an unreasonable risk of harm.

The court said the Nevada Public Records Law recognizes public documents may contain confidential information. And the Legislature has provided that this information may be eliminated from the record, but the remaining document must be open for public inspection.

It said Judge Berry must review the post-permit investigation, suspension or revocation record to determine whether it contained confidential information protected by the law.