E-mail release opposed

By BRENDAN RILEY

CARSON CITY -- A newspaper's lawsuit seeking copies of e-mails between Gov. Jim Gibbons and 10 individuals should be rejected because the e-mails aren't public records or don't exist, the attorney general's office said Friday.

State attorney Jim Spencer, in a brief filed Friday in response to the Reno Gazette-Journal lawsuit, said Carson City District Judge Bill Maddox can privately review the e-mails on the governor's state account that do exist to verify their nonpublic status.

Spencer, chief of staff for Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto who is representing Gibbons, said the newspaper sought e-mails between Jan. 1 and June 4 but there weren't any in that period between Gibbons and five of the individuals listed.

The five included Warren Trepp, accused by a former employee of providing Gibbons with a lavish cruise and money for help in getting military contracts while Gibbons was in Congress. The FBI recently investigated the claim and cleared Gibbons.

Spencer also said e-mails between Gibbons and the other five, including first lady Dawn Gibbons and three current or former top staffers, aren't public records or are privileged. He also said there's no legal requirement to provide a log of the e-mails.

The state Supreme Court has held that Nevada's broad public records law ensures access to "vital information about governmental activities," Spencer said, adding that materials "that do not concern the public business" aren't in that category.

The newspaper's lawsuit claims the Gibbons administration "in essence told the RGJ 'take our word for it'" that the e-mails were privileged. The lawsuit asks for a court order to either compel the administration to release the e-mails or provide a log.

Maddox has scheduled a Dec. 4 hearing in the case.