Learn how to uncover police misconduct records at Institute webinar, Jan. 24

The murder of George Floyd by police in 2020 prompted renewed focus on police misconduct and spurred public sentiment for holding law enforcement accountable. But journalists often struggle to access public records that could reveal police conduct. The outcomes of police discipline proceedings across the country are among our nation’s best kept secrets.

Register now to join the National Press Club Journalism Institute at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 24 for an hour-long program to learn how to break into this hidden system. Journalists across the country will gain an understanding of the national trends and issues, how to localize stories, and what they can do to unearth these records.

The hour will feature tips from:

• WAMU reporter Martin Austermuhle, who recently co-authored a story on how a panel of high-ranking officers kept troubled officers on the force in Washington, D.C.;
• Maryland State Sen. Will Smith, a key player in the passage of Anton’s Law, a measure that is supposed to make police disciplinary information public but has had mixed success since it took effect;
• Deborah Katz Levi, a public defender in Baltimore who found that the Baltimore Police Department had wrongly expunged discipline records for more than 20 officers, and
• Moderator Miranda Spivack, a veteran reporter who recently published a series of stories about the erasure of civilian criminal records and police discipline records, and the danger these erasures pose to holding law enforcement accountable.

Program participants will learn:

• How to find sources for records disclosure laws in your state, including understanding how to ensure that the law enforcement agencies you cover are complying with disclosure laws and regulations;
• What to do if law enforcement agencies refuse to disclose anything, citing pending investigations;
• How to find records involving police misconduct;
• Story ideas for covering law enforcement, and
• How to get help when you are stonewalled

If you have questions about this program, please email Julie Moos, Institute executive director, at [email protected].

About the speakers

Martin Austermuhle is a reporter in WAMU’s newsroom. He covers politics, development, education, social issues, and crime, among other things. Austermuhle joined the WAMU staff in April 2013 as a web producer and reporter. Prior to that, he served as editor-in-chief for DCist.com. He has written for the Washington City Paper, Washington Diplomat and other publications.

Deborah Katz Levi began her career as a public defender with the Salt Lake Legal Defenders in 2008.  In 2012, she joined the Maryland Office of the Public Defender, and has been with the Baltimore City Felony Trial division since 2013.  She became the Director of Special Litigation in 2017, where she aggressively litigates access to internal affairs files and specializes her practice in exposing police misconduct and curing discovery abuses.

William C. Smith Jr. was born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland and became a first-generation college student when he attended and graduated from the College of William and Mary. He earned a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University and a law degree from William and Mary. In 2014, he was elected to represent District 20 in the Maryland House of Delegates. In 2016, he was appointed to represent District 20 in the Maryland State Senate, making him the first African-American Senator from Montgomery County.

Miranda S. Spivack is a veteran reporter who writes frequently about legal issues and state and local government transparency. Her series, “State Secrets,” for Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting, won the 2017 Society for Professional Journalists’ Sunshine Award. She formerly worked for The Washington Post, where she was honored by the Maryland Delaware DC Press Association with a first place award in 2013 for stories on regional government secrecy.  In 2021, she was an Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellow.

About the Institute

The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. As the non-profit affiliate of the National Press Club, the Institute powers journalism in the public interest.

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