6A THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2023 PALLADIUM-ITEM Obituaries RICHMOND, IN Dix- ie Jean Coffin, age 59, of Richmond, Indiana, died Monday, March 13, 2023, at Reid Health, after a long battle with NAFLD. Born November 26, 1963, in Richmond, In- diana, to Earl Frederick and Mary Alice Dalzell Davis, Dixie was a resi- dent of this community for her entire life. She worked as a Deputy at the Wayne County Sheriff Office and was assigned to the jail division. Dixie had a great sense of humor and enjoyed camping, baking, cooking, shopping, traveling and cake decorating. She was an avid cookie jar collector.
Dixie loved spending time with her grandkids. Survivors include her husband, Douglas Coffin, to whom she married November 16, 1981; sons, Joshua (April) Coffin, of Richmond, Indiana, and James (Melissa) Coffin, of Columbus, Ohio; grandchildren, Jaxson, Jada, and Gavin; brothers, Robert (Sally) Davis, of Columbus, Ohio, Tom (Louise) Davis, of Ora Valley, Arizona, Dennis (Lisa) Davis, of Mequon, Wisconsin, Jim (Pam) Davis, of Anderson, Indiana, and Douglas (Son- dra) Davis, of Lafayette, Indiana; brother in law, Michael Coffin, of Gulfport, Mississippi; sister in law, Robin Wilson, of Bradford, Ohio; numerous nieces; nephews; and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents; and nephew, Stephen Davis. Per the families wishes, there will be no public service at this time. Memorial contributions can be made to Indiana Donor Network, 3760 Gunion Road, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46222.
Condolences may be sent to the family via the guest book at www.doanmillsfuneralhome.com. Dixie Coffin I I Doris A. Parrett, age 87, passed away at Reid Health on March 12, 2023. She was born April 23, 1935, the daughter of Lee Morton Turner and Cora Ruth Miller Turner, in Richmond, Indiana. Doris had been a res- ident of Wayne County most of her life.
She was a graduate of Richmond High School and had been employed in sales for 20 years at Floral Products. She leaves to cherish her memory; her daughters: Barbara Lynn Corwin (Michael) and Jennie Kay Bailey, both of Richmond; her son: Lee Edwin Wright of Centerville; grandchildren: Kathleen (Robert), Heather (Brett), Dylan, Connor (An- gela), Christopher (Alexa); great grandchildren: Daniel, Sylvie, Karter, Paisley, Westley, Axton and Theo; and many nieces, nephews and friends. She is preceded in death by her husband: Alfred Parrett (2010); her parents: Lee Morton Turner and Cora Ruth Miller; step-mother: Grace Estil Northup Turner; four brothers: Joseph Turner, Lowell Turner, James Burke and Donald Burke; and two sisters: Barbara Lee and Lestra. Many special thanks to Tracy and Samantha Lewis. Funeral services will be held at Community Family Funeral Home on Thursday, March 16, 2023, at 11:00 AM.
Family and friends may visit the funeral home Thursday two hours prior to the service. Interment will follow at Goshen Ceme- tery. Send online condolences to the family via the guestbook at www.communityfamilyfh.com Doris A. Parrett Dixie 59 Richmond 13-Mar Doan Mills Funeral Home Doris A. 87 Richmond 12-Mar Community Family Funeral Home Additional information in display obituaries Obituaries appear in print and online at www.pal-item.com/obituaries OBITUARIES AND DEATH NOTICES Name Age Town, State Death Date Arrangements JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.
Following threats and at- tacks on public state lawmakers across the U.S. have stepped up to shield personal infor- mation from being publicly disclosed about judges, police, elected and various public em- ployees. The measures generally are winning widespread support in state capitols adding a layer of secrecy, in the name of safety, that could make it more to determine whether public are complying with residency laws and paying their property taxes. The to exempt more information from public disclosure come despite the fact that many govern- ments are more transparent than ever when it comes to their meetings making permanent the online streaming options spurred as a response to coronavi- rus-related restrictions on public gatherings. led to a split assessment of government openness during Sunshine Week, an annual recogni- tion of public information laws that began Sunday and runs through Saturday.
Though meetings may be more accessible, ly, government is getting more secretive every said David Cuillier, an associate journalism professor at the University of Arizona who has been analyzing data about government compliance with open-records laws. People requesting records from the federal govern- ment are successful only about of the time, down from a greater than success rate more than a decade ago, according to research. Information requests under state laws typically fare better, Cuillier said, but year, we get exemptions being passed in state legislatures all across the coun- try, and that just seems to be On a case-by-case basis, many public records ex- ceptions may appear reasonable and The movement to shield the home addresses of judges pro- vides one good example. In 2020, a man disgruntled with U.S. District Judge Esther Salas came to her New Jersey home disguised as a deliveryman and fatally shot her 20-year-old son while wounding her husband.
New Jersey re- sponded later that year by enacting a law that exempt- ed the home addresses of current or retired judges, prosecutors and law enforcement from disclo- sure under public records laws. The measure, called Law in honor of the son, also allowed covered to ask businesses or individuals to re- move their home addresses from internet sites they control. Though some states already had similar laws, the New Jersey case provided an impetus for action else- where. Most states now have laws prohibiting govern- mental entities from disclosing the home addresses of at least some public employees, with judges among the most commonly protected, according to research by Jodie Gil, an associate journalism professor at Southern Connecticut State University. A study panel of the Uniform Law Commission, a organization that drafts potential legislation for state lawmakers, plans to recommend this spring that a common policy be drafted to exclude home addresses and certain personal information from public-record disclosures, said Vince DeLiberato, director of Legislative Reference Bu- reau and chair of the study panel.
The policy also could include an option to shield information for other public facing threats, he said. Meanwhile, states are pressing forward with their own information-exemption laws for certain The Missouri Senate recently voted 30-1 for legisla- tion that allows judges and prosecutors to request that their home addresses, phone numbers, personal email addresses, marital status, identities and other information be removed from public display. The shield would apply not only to government records and websites but also to privately run sites such as on- line phone directories and internet search engines. That bill is now pending in the House. On the same day as the Missouri vote, the Georgia Senate voted 53-0 for legislation allowing federal, state or local public employees to request that their residential addresses and phone numbers be removed from online property records posted by local govern- ments.
That bill is now pending in the House. want people to be able to track these folks down and cause Georgia state Sen. Matt Brass, a Republican, said while explaining his bill to a Senate committee. But Richard a former president of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation, raised con- cerns about the unintended consequences, asserting that the New Jersey law into a bit of a train Some governments shut down entire data- bases because of uncertainty about exactly whose in- formation should be removed from which public rec- ords, he said. New Jersey lawmakers responded in January 2022 by tweaking the process in Law and establish- ing a state of Information Privacy funded with $3 million to create an online portal through which judicial and law enforcement can request that their information be redacted.
Public records listing the home addresses of gov- ernment can function as an important tool for journalists working on public accountability stories, Gil said. Addresses in voter registration and prop- erty ownership records can be used to determine whether actually live in the district they repre- sent or are delinquent on property taxes. When she was working as a journalist a decade ago, Gil reported that a local tax collector was certifying that some public had paid their vehicle taxes when they actually had not. something that I could have never even at- tempted if public records were not connecting public and their Gil said. publish any address I say the mayor lives at this house but I needed his address to that he was pay- ing his Lawmakers are taking a variety of approaches to address this year.
An Oregon bill would prohibit the home addresses of elected and candidates from being publicly disclosed on voter reg- istration lists. A Connecticut bill would add court mar- shals, attorney employees and workers in a state unit that determines services for people with dis- abilities to a list of about a dozen types of public em- ployees whose home addresses are under the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act. The Connecticut bill is backed by state Attorney General William Tong, a Democrat, who told lawmak- ers that his assistants are getting targeted online. get really angry when the subject of an enforcement Tong said, sometimes they retaliate and they threaten people in my with But redacting public employee addresses from state records necessarily prevent threats and vides employees with a false sense of comfort and se- said Colleen Murphy, executive director of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission, a state agency that administers and enforces open-rec- ords laws. better or worse, the fact is that the residential addresses of most people are now readily available for free, or for a nominal charge, on the internet and through other commercial Murphy said.
In New Mexico, a series of drive-by shootings at the homes of Democratic elected prompted the Senate to pass legislation that would let public keep secret their home addresses on election-related documents and government websites. The provision was included in a broader election bill that is now pending in the House. Among the supporters is Democratic state Sen. Lin- da Lopez, of Albuquerque, whose home was hit by multiple shots while her 10-year-old daughter was sleeping. understand the issue on Lopez said, the day and time that in, we really have to rethink what we are States shield addresses of public workers after threats First Amendment advocates worry about transparency David A.
Lieb ASSOCIATED PRESS News crews set up outside the home of U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in North Brunswick, N.J. In 2020, a man disgruntled with Salas came to her house disguised as a deliveryman and fatally shot her 20-year-old son while wounding her husband. MARK FILE.
