State Ex Rel. Richards v. Foust

Dane County District Attorney C. William Foust appeals from a judgment denying his motion to quash an alternative writ of mandamus. The trial court issued the alternative writ on Harlan Richards' petition. Richards' petition alleged that Foust had denied his request under Wisconsin's public records law, secs. 19.31-.39, Stats., to inspect the prosecutor's closed case file in the criminal action State v. Richards, case No. 84 CF 344.

The central issue is whether there is a common law exception prohibiting disclosure of a prosecutor's closed case files under Wisconsin's public records law. We…