(Spirit Lake)– The Minnesota Supreme Court has ordered most hearings and records in child protection matters be open to the public starting July 1st.
The order follows a three-year pilot project where the public was given access to juvenile protection hearings and records in 12 counties.
The court ruled that except in exceptional circumstances, all hearings in Minnesota will be open to the public in matters of protection or services, neglect, foster care, review of out-of-home placement and termination of parental rights.
Locally, Dickinson County Attorney Ned Bjornstad hopes the state of Iowa will sit up and take notice to what our Minnesota neighbors are doing. He think it’s a good idea. It’s been two years since the highly publicized Shelby Duis case in Spirit Lake brought the matter to light in Iowa. But so far, nothing has been done along the line of making such records available to the public.
