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Other agencies did provide arrest reports. I knew some cops, who said arrest reports could be withheld for a variety of reasons - the mood of the desk sergeant, even the perception that the accused might be embarrassed if the report got out. Sometimes we did get reports, but no one in the newsroom knew how much was being released, what was being withheld and why. Whether police didn't want to give us the info or it was just too much of a bother, I never knew. Reporter: They said there's a problem with the computers. Reporter: They said the printer was down.Įditor: Can't they email the arrest reports? On a typical Saturday night, this is how it worked:Įditor: Did you get anything from the city? Some agencies - and here I'm looking at you, City of Lancaster Police Department - took it to ridiculous extremes. And that was often the rationale: We can't give you the arrest report because. But Pennsylvania's open records laws permit law enforcement to withhold information if it's considered a record of a criminal investigation. Reporter: Officer, can I get a copy of the arrest report? Let me tell you how this process often worked in Pennsylvania: Police agencies routinely make all this available to the media. I was added to the distribution list for one local police agency without even asking to be now I get daily arrest reports via email.

Documents, photos, even videos created by a public agency are readily available - with some notable exceptions (and here I'm thinking of the video of New England Patriots' owner Robert Kraft in that massage parlor). More: What did Florida Man do on your birthday?įlorida has one of the most robust public records laws in the nation. More: Will Greenlee's "Off the Beat" chronicles the weird, the wild, the wacky

So why is "Florida Man" a thing, but "Pennsylvania Man" isn't? But I hail from Pennsylvania, and let me tell you, the Keystone State is no slouch in this regard. View Gallery: Florida man stories and headlines from 2018 you need to sit down forįlorida definitely has more than its share of oddballs, bumbling would-be criminals and drunken buffoons.