Invoke the nine-knockdown rule

Two local announcements capped off Sunshine Week (dedicated to openness in government) in appropriate fashion.

First, the Nevada Supreme Court on Thursday denied an emergency motion to delay the release of a year's worth of Clark County School Board e-mails.

Karen Gray, a Henderson resident who requested the information, expected to get the in-house communications as soon as Friday.

And it's just as significant that -- in an era when bureaucrats sometimes threaten huge fees as a way to discourage citizens from exercising due oversight over their shenanigans -- Ms. Gray won't have to pay a cent for it. Not for now, anyway.

Ms. Gray, whose case had been labeled a "nuisance" by Clark County School District officials, said she sought the e-mails because she believes they could expose how discussion on public policy is subverted and could provide insight into the workings of the School Board. She said Wednesday's ruling restored her faith in democracy.

In response to Ms. Gray's request, the school district originally said the e-mail retrieval would cost more than $4,000 for 60 hours of work. In January, school officials revised the figure down to $135, explaining new technology had shortened the job to three hours. District Judge Susan Johnson said Ms. Gray's request was "focused and direct" and that she should not be charged.

Meantime, in a ruling just as likely to gladden the hearts of First Amendment fans, U.S. District Judge David Ezra of Honolulu last week shot down several Las Vegas ordinances, revised in 2006, that were aimed at blocking churchmen and others from setting up at the Fremont Street Experience outdoor mall to hand out literature.

"Hopefully the city, after having these numerous decisions against them from the federal District Court and the Court of Appeals, will cease to enact unconstitutional ordinances violating the free speech rights of people at the Fremont Street Experience," said ever-optimistic ACLU attorney Allen Lichtenstein.

Oh come on, Mr. Lichtenstein. It's only tax money. It's not like the city has anything better to do with it.