Court Opinion

ID: 9861143
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 23:46:56.794159+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T11:27:20.351376
License: Public Domain

UHLENHOPP, Justice
(concurring specially).
I concur in division II of the majority opinion and in the result. I am influenced by a desire not to chill First Amendment rights by a restricted application of newsworthiness.
On the other hand, I would not reach the subject of division I. That division involves the issue of what constitutes a public record for purposes of the tort of violating a person’s privacy. I would await an appeal which actually necessitates a decision on that subject. Involved inter alia is the question whether unsolicited letters written to public officials automatically become public records for purposes of the tort although the letters deal with private affairs which would otherwise be protected by tort law. The privacy of members of the public may hang upon a very slender thread, depending upon our conclusion on this subject.