Matthew Perry Smith v. School District of Oconee

An outspoken opponent of the theory critical race is taking the Oconee School District to court in dispute of the way the superintendent handled his freedom of information request.  The Common Pleas Court January 14 lawsuit alleges the district unlawfully failed to respond to plaintiff Matthew Perry Smith’s seeking a presentation document titled, “Be The Change.”  Among the legal grounds that attorney Keith Denny filed on behalf of Smith are the following reasons sought for relief:  “On October 27, 2021, Dr. Michael Thorsland, SDOC Superintendent, sent Plaintiff’s counsel an email refusing to provide a copy of the requested presentation.  Rather, Dr. Thorsland stated that he had the right to decide if he wanted to provide a copy or allow Plaintiff to come to the SDOC office and inspect the presentation at his office at the SDOC….In closing and refusing to provide a copy of the presentation, Dr. Thorsland stated, ‘If you would like to view the files with Mr. Smith, please contact me to schedule a time to do so.” In a response, the Smith lawsuit contends that, according to Thorsland, it’s the district’s position that the FOIA statute allows the public body to choose how it would respond to a FOIA request and refused to turn over the presentation.  And, further alleges the filing, “Dr. Thorsland admitted the document is a public document.”