MPS - A FOIA CASE, A COURT RULING & SOME RATHER UNCOMFORTABLE TESTIMONY

[Shadowninja]

A FOIA CASE, A COURT RULING & SOME RATHER UNCOMFORTABLE TESTIMONY

Dear readers,

A Midland County judge has entered judgment in favor of Renita Bonadies in her Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against Midland Public School District.

And as is so often the case, the actual court opinion tells a more complicated story than a headline ever could.

The court found that the District was not permitted to charge fees for the two FOIA requests at issue because it failed to specifically identify the "unreasonably high costs" necessary to justify those fees under Michigan law.

The result?

Both fees were reduced to $0. The District was ordered to refund the amounts Bonadies had paid, and she was awarded her full reasonable attorney fees and costs for bringing the action.

The court also found that the District failed to properly post and maintain its FOIA procedures and guidelines and written public summary after its internal appeal process had changed.

But tucked inside the 18-page opinion is testimony that deserves attention all its own.

Former FOIA Coordinator and Human Resources Director Karen Justin testified that Bonadies was viewed "very negatively" by the school administration and that disparaging comments were often made when Bonadies submitted FOIA requests.

According to the court's opinion, Justin recalled comments including:

"Not them again."

"They don't have children in the District."

"They need to get hobbies."

Justin further testified that, in her opinion, Bonadies was not treated fairly by the District.

That is testimony contained in the court's written opinion. It should not, however, be confused with the judge's ultimate legal finding.

Despite that testimony, the court did not find that Midland Public Schools acted arbitrarily, capriciously, or in bad faith. The judge also did not find that the District adopted policies specifically to thwart Bonadies.

Those two facts can exist in the same court opinion.

A citizen successfully challenged FOIA fees and obtained a judgment against her school district.

A former district official gave remarkably candid testimony about how that citizen was discussed internally.

And the judge nevertheless declined to find that the District acted in bad faith.

Lady Budgetdown has no need to choose which portion of the ruling readers should see.

You get all of it. Because receipts aren't very useful if we only keep the convenient ones.

Source: Bonadies v. Midland Public School District, Midland County Circuit Court, Case No. 24-3074-CZ-C, Opinion and Order After Bench Trial, August 11, 2026.

With receipts and respect.

#LadyBudgetdown #MidlandPublicSchools #FOIA #PublicRecords #GovernmentTransparency #MichiganSchools #WithReceiptsAndRespect #EducationTransparency #Renitabonadies