The Nebraska ACLU filed a lawsuit against the Department of Correctional Services on Friday. The civil liberties organization alleges that the department is in direct violation of Nebraska's open records laws.
ACLU Nebraska's legal director Amy Miller tells NewsRadio 1110 KFAB that for years they were able to ask for, and receive, open records requests about the suppliers of lethal injection drugs, but that has changed. "We were denied. The state Department of Corrections claims now, that things like invoices and sending checks to drug suppliers is all attorney-client privileged."
Miller says Nebraskans deserve to have a transparent government. "One reason that all of us should be concerned about this most recent purchase of drugs was, we currently have no information about the supplier of the drugs, whether the drugs have been tested, how much money was spent obtaining the drugs. These are materials that tax payers have the right to obtain and review and we have filed a lawsuit this morning against the Department of Corrections asking a judge to compel production of the records."