Leading up to an election last year in which the Mountain Home School District asked voters for a millage increase, it came to light former Superintendent Dr. Jake Long had sent text messages to board members about the proposal in violation of the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. The act was passed in 1967 to “ensure an open government by elevating transparency so that citizens may be fully informed of the working of their government and the actions of their public officials” according to the FOIA handbook.
Fourteenth Judicial Prosecuting Attorney David Ethredge says once the texts were discovered, he was contacted by multiple people.
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Ethredge has sent a letter to current Superintendent Allyson Dewey after asking the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office to investigate the matter. In the letter, Ethredge says “…it is clear that Superintendent Jake Long engaged in a course of conduct that was designed to circumvent and frustrate the explicit intent of the ARFOIA. Superintendent Long created the non-public text communication to avoid open public meetings on matters that were of great public interest. While initiated by Long, the actions also involved the then existing school board.”
The Prosecuting Attorney says with the way the FOI law is written, there are no criminal provisions they could pursue for former Superintendent Long because he was not an elected official.
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When it comes to the school board members that exchanged text messages in violation of the FOIA, Ethredge says there wasn’t enough evidence from the sheriff’s office investigation to pursue charges.
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The prosecuting attorney didn’t mince words when asked who is at fault for what transpired, but he believes the new superintendent is working to remedy the situation.
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Ethredge in his letter to Superintendent Dewey says it would be appropriate to provide a training session for the present school board and relevant school personnel on all ARFOIA law.
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