PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A judge has ruled against a Rhode Island man’s attempt to get immediate access to police internal affairs reports.
The Providence Journal reports the judge said in her ruling Monday that she would likely need to impose a “balancing test,” measuring the public’s interest in the reports against potential privacy concerns of the officers involved.
Dimitri Lyssikatos, who had sought a summary judgment in his lawsuit against the Pawtucket Police Department, says the judge’s ruling was a win for government and a loss for the people.
A lawyer representing the Pawtucket Fraternal Order of Police declined to comment after the hearing.
But the attorney previously said some of the records were internal complaints, such as an officer needing a haircut or wearing the wrong uniform.
