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County coroner appeals lawsuit ruling

Justin Addison Editor/Publisher
Posted 9/1/20

Howard County Coroner Frank Flaspohler is appealing a ruling from Circuit 14 Judge Scott Hayes that he was in violation of the state’s Sunshine Law when he denied access of a transcript to the …

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County coroner appeals lawsuit ruling

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Howard County Coroner Frank Flaspohler is appealing a ruling from Circuit 14 Judge Scott Hayes that he was in violation of the state’s Sunshine Law when he denied access of a transcript to the Glasgow Public Schools in 2017.

The ruling, which was handed down July 29, orders Mr. Flaspohler to pay a $500 fine for violating the Missouri Sunshine Law, and $73,259.50 in statuary attorney fees. The trial was held in January of this year.

Mr. Flaspohler’s attorney, Richard B. Hicks, told this newspaper shortly after the judgment was made, that he planned to appeal the case. “I’m not surprised by (the ruling) based on the history of the case,” he said in July. “The judgment the judge has signed was a judgment that was prepared by the Glasgow School District. So he just signed off on their judgment.”

As previously reported in the Fayette Advertiser, the suit by the Glasgow School District against Mr. Flaspohler was brought about regarding a transcript of a coroner’s inquest held by Mr. Flaspohler following the December 21, 2016 suicide death of rural Glasgow teenager Kenneth Suttner. The school district had repeatedly requested a copy of the transcript, but Mr. Flaspohler refused to comply, insisting that the record was closed because it was part of a criminal investigation.

Mr. Flaspohler also contends that the office of coroner is a law-enforcement entity and can therefore close records. 

Mr. Flaspohler faced, and won, a similar lawsuit brought by the Columbia Missourian newspaper. The judge in that case, ruled in February 2019 that the coroner did not knowingly or purposefully violate the Sunshine Law when he denied that newspaper’s requests for the same transcripts. In his written judgment, Judge Jeff Harris stated that although the Court determined that the inquest transcript should have been disclosed under the Open Records Act, the issue that was presented to the Court is far from settled and apparently one that seldom arises.

Judge Harris’s ruling left ambiguous the decision regarding whether or not county coroners in Missouri are considered law enforcement officers, and can, therefore, close records. Judge Hayes said matter-of-factly during the January 16 trial that he would once again find that the coroner is not a law enforcement officer.

The appeal will, in effect, ask the appellate court to rule on this matter. Such a ruling will likely have far-reaching impacts for coroners across the state.

This is not the first time this case will head to the appellate court. Mr. Flaspohler previously appealed Judge Hayes’s ruling from 2017. Both Mr. Hicks and Thomas A. Mickes, attorney for the Glasgow School District, argued before the three-judge panel of the Western District Court of Appeals at William Woods University in Fulton on April 3, 2019. Ultimately, the court dismissed the appeal for what Judge Edward R. Ardini, Jr. cited as a “lack of jurisdiction.” When Judge Hayes ordered Mr. Flaspohler to turn over the transcripts to Glasgow in 2017 he had not made the ruling of whether or not the coroner had been in violation of the Sunshine by withholding those documents.

“The School District’s request for the imposition of statutory penalties and an award of attorney fees and costs is ‘part of a single claim for violation of the Missouri Sunshine Law’,” wrote Judge Ardini, Jr. “Thus, the trial court’s purported judgment—which left those issues unresolved–—did not adjudicate a distinct judicial unit and is not an appealable judgment.”

Mr. Flaspohler said at that time that he was disappointed by the lack of ruling because the question of whether or not the office of the coroner may be considered law enforcement is yet unresolved. “I think that’s a significant issue, not only in this case but how all coroners operate in the future,” he said.

Members of the Missouri Coroners Association were present during arguments made to the Court of Appeals. The court, however, never debated the question of the role of coroner as a law enforcement agency. The decision to dismiss the appeal was made with regard to procedure, rather than the arguments of the case. “It would have been nice to get a ruling,” said  Mr. Mickes, following the court’s decision.

While the case is on appeal, the $500 fine and $73,259.50 in attorney fees awarded to the Glasgow School District will be stayed. An appellate ruling in Mr. Flaspohler’s favor could wipe out the judgment.

However, if the court declines to hear the case or upholds Judge Hayes’s findings, the taxpayers of Howard County will foot the bill.

Flaspohler, Coroner, Glasgow

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