Mississippi Department of Audit v. Gulf Publishing Company, Inc.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

LEE, C.J.,

for the Court:

I. Initial Lawsuit

¶ 1. In 2012, the Department of Marine Resources (DMR) was being investigated by a joint federal" and state task force for misappropriation of funds. On November 14, 2012, the Sun Herald newspaper submitted a written request to obtain DMR records, in accordance with section 25-61-5 of the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 (MPRA). Miss.Code Ann. § 25-61-5 (Supp.2015). DMR signaled its willingness to comply with the request, but the Sun Herald did not want to pay the associated costs. ' The Sun Herald submitted a second…