{"id":2357051,"date":"2024-10-19T15:32:56","date_gmt":"2024-10-19T19:32:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-sues-detroit-for-alleged-foia-deleting-ballot-drop-box-video-footage-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-10-19T15:35:33","modified_gmt":"2024-10-19T19:35:33","slug":"gop-sues-detroit-for-alleged-foia-deleting-ballot-drop-box-video-footage-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-sues-detroit-for-alleged-foia-deleting-ballot-drop-box-video-footage-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"GOP sues Detroit for alleged FOIA, deleting ballot drop box video footage &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgop-sues-detroit-for-alleged-foia-deleting-ballot-drop-box-video-footage-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2357051&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Republican National Committee (RNC) has initiated a lawsuit against the City of Detroit&#8217;s Department of Elections. The \u200blawsuit alleges that the department\u2064 deleted video footage from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-urge-dismissal-of-doj-lawsuit-against-georgia-election-law\/\" title=\"House Republicans Urge Dismissal Of DOJ Lawsuit Against Georgia Election Law\">absentee <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-zuckerberg-bans-president-trump-from-using-facebook-indefinitely\/\" title=\"BREAKING: Zuckerberg Bans President Trump from Using Facebook \u201cIndefinitely\u201d\">ballot drop boxes<\/a><\/a> during the August primaries while a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for \u200cthat footage was still pending. RNC\u200d Chairman \u200dMichael Whatley criticized this action \u200das \u200da violation of transparency and a breach \u200bof public trust, stating that such actions undermine confidence in electoral processes. Local and state laws mandate that surveillance footage of ballot drop boxes be retained for at least 30 days,\u2064 and security \u200drecords must be kept for two years. The RNC&#8217;s FOIA request specifically sought video from August 7 and 8\u2063 concerning \u2064a drop box located on the Wayne Community College campus.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">GOP sues Detroit for alleged FOIA, deleting ballot drop box video footage<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1839761\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square) &ndash; The Republican National Committee has filed another&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/prod-static.gop.com\/media\/documents\/2024.10.15_Verified_Complaint_RNC-Detroit_as_filed31302801.1_1729087199.pdf\">lawsuit<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;against the City of Detroit Department of Elections, this time for deleting absentee ballot drop box video surveillance from the August primaries while a FOIA request for the footage was pending.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;Deleting drop box surveillance footage while there is a pending FOIA request for it is an assault on transparency,&rdquo; RNC Chairman Michael Whatley said. &ldquo;This breach of trust is exactly what reduces confidence in our elections. We will hold Detroit accountable, as this secrecy has no place in a fair and secure election&ndash;Michiganders deserve far better.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>According to local and state laws, drop box video surveillance records must be stored for 30 days after the record is created, and ballot drop box logs and security records must be kept for two years after the election is held.<\/p>\n<p>On Aug. 21, the RNC filed a FOIA request for surveillance footage from Aug. 7 and 8 of an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/michigan-senate-passes-bills-threatening-election-integrity\/\" title=\"Michigan Senate Passes Bills Threatening Election Integrity\">absent voter ballot drop box<\/a> on Wayne Community College campus, plus records detailing when the drop box was installed and other security measures.<\/p>\n<p>The city immediately requested 10 extra days to produce the footage, promising to issue a response by Sept. 12. On Sept. 16, the city issued an electronic response to the FOIA request, notifying the plaintiffs that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-orders-michigan-county-to-pay-10000-to-election-integrity-group-over-foia-practices\/\" title=\"Michigan County Ordered to Pay K to Election Integrity Group for FOIA Practices\">requested video footage<\/a> was no longer available since 30 days had passed since the August primary elections.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Department of Elections has violated the FOIA by deleting the video surveillance records&hellip;after receiving the Request well before the date on which the Department of Elections was legally permitted to destroy the records,&rdquo; the lawsuit reads, adding the department also &ldquo;acted arbitrarily and capriciously&rdquo; by delaying to address the RNC&rsquo;s request for 26 days.<\/p>\n<p>The Michigan Court of Claims has ruled in multiple cases that &ldquo;a public body cannot avoid disclosure of a record by destroying that record after it receives a FOIA request,&rdquo; because &ldquo;If public bodies were free to dispose of requested records during this time, a claimant&rsquo;s right to disclosure under FOIA would not be adequately safeguarded.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Since the footage has been taped over and cannot be retrieved, the lawsuit requests monetary and injunctive relief.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1839761\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1839761\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>GOP sues Detroit for deleting ballot drop box video during FOIA request<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2357052,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AP24164852424075-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[41795,5897,9507,6203,4585],"class_list":["post-2357051","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-ballot-drop-box","tag-detroit","tag-foia","tag-gop","tag-lawsuit"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AP24164852424075-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2357051","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2357051"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2357051\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2357052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2357051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2357051"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2357051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}