Alumnus calls on Pennsylvania officials to stop blocking access to Penn State records

Madison, Wis, Jan. 10 – A Penn State alumnus today called on top Pennsylvania officials to stop blocking his efforts to obtain public records about Penn State.

Immediately releasing state and university records would shed significant light on how officials responded to child abuse allegations, said Ryan Bagwell, an alumnus who’s been trying to obtain records since June.

Instead, officials have denied eight of his 12 requests filed under the Right-to-Know Law because they weren’t “sufficiently specific.” Last week, they stepped up their efforts by filing a lawsuit in Commonwealth Court to block an order to release contracts with the law firm of Louis J. Freeh.

“Today’s release of the Paterno report underscores the need for full disclosure from state and university officials,” Bagwell said. “It raises important questions about why Freeh investigators decided to omit other plausible conclusions from their $6.5 million report.”

“Instead of coming clean, the Department of Education has embarked on an expensive and unprecedented mission to withhold documents from the very people who own them,” Bagwell said. “It’s time for Ron Tomalis to level with Pennsylvanians and stop hiding behind an army of lawyers who are engaging in their own questionable conduct.”

For more information, contact:

Ryan Bagwell

443-867-6413

www.bagwellforpennstate.com