PUBLIC RECORDS BOOTCAMP | Making The Case: Crafting The Perfect Request For Public Records

Take your Citizen Detective skills to the next level!

Join us for a 3-part webinar series for citizen solvers, digital volunteers, and citizen detectives to learn the importance of and strategy for accessing public records in research. National Freedom of Information Coalition (NFOIC) will lead participants through a multi-part training with a focus on finding records, crafting requests, and options for combating roadblocks.

Come prepared for a comprehensive education in public records from the leading nonprofit fostering a transparent state and local government and access to information, NFOIC. Learn about how to secure relevant files, videos, pictures, coroner’s report, police report, and other documents via a FOIA request. Also learn who you should contact, how to request public records, and what happens if you get denied.

WHERE TO START: HOW TO FIND PUBLIC RECORDS
April 15, 2021 | 7PM - 8PM EST (you must register separately to attend each event)
Best practices for locating information, where to start, how to search, and what to look for in the process.

MAKING THE CASE: CRAFTING THE PERFECT REQUEST FOR PUBLIC RECORDS
April 22, 2021 | 7PM - 8PM EST (you must register separately to attend each event)
Familiarize yourself with the process for making a FOIA request from crafting effective request letters to platforms that make the process easier.

TROUBLESHOOTING FOIA REQUESTS: DENIALS, APPEALS AND NEXT STEPS
April 29, 2021 | 7PM - 8PM EST (you must register separately to attend each event)
Learn the ins and outs of overcoming public records request denials, how-to combat excessive fees, and options after a denial. NFOIC will also share insights and best practices for how to bring a pro se complaint after a denial.

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Uncovered is a software platform that combines data, analytics, and the “wisdom of the community” to help solve the cold cases of the murdered or missing. By cultivating resources and visualizing cold cases to activate citizen detectives, we're building a community around collective impact. We believe we can use our collective impact and success of the platform to influence public policy and ultimately start getting wrongful murder convictions overturned and cold cases solved.

National Freedom of Information Coalition a national nonprofit, nonpartisan organization of state and regional affiliates representing 39 states, commonwealths, territories and districts including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. Through our programs and services and national member network, NFOIC promotes press freedom, legislative and administrative reforms, dispute resolutions and litigation (when needed) to ensure open, transparent and accessible state and local governments and public institutions. We are proactively working to integrate new voices into the government transparency world, recognizing that information is critical to empowering marginalized groups, and that new perspectives are essential to healthy civic engagement and democracy.