COLUMBIA Leonard Riley Jr. knows his First Amendment rights, and his rights to public information, and he knows when theyve been violated.

Dissatisfied with the management policies at the Medical University of South Carolina, Riley and other activists organized a silent protest of the universitys board of trustees meetings last fall. He said they had intended to go to every meeting until their complaints were acknowledged.

But at their second appearance, the trustees abruptly decided that the previous protest had been unruly and distracting. The protesters were provided just five seats and prohibited from displaying their signs, an action that Riley considered a violation of their freedom of speech.

If a public meeting is happening, we have a right to be there, he said this week. This was a violation of my rights under the Constitution of the United States.

The restrictions didnt last long, and Riley, chair of the Carolina Alliance for Fair Employment, said the protests will continue until the board gives them an audience.

Rileys experience is just one example of an attempt to infringe upon South Carolinas Freedom of Information Act. The FOI Act outlines citizens access to public information controlled by state agencies and legislators.

After three S.C. Supreme Court decisions last year weakened the FOI Act, state lawmakers have introduced five bills this session intended to strengthen and clarify state laws.

We need to open up the secrets of agencies and local governments to public scrutiny, said John Crangle, chair of the states chapter of Common Cause, a citizens lobby for democracy reform. Thats what we need in South Carolina.

If passed, the bills would designate an office of FOI review; lift legislators exemption from FOI; require an agenda for public meetings; and disclose cause of death from autopsy reports.

Patricia OConnor, chair of the South Carolina Press Associations FOI committee and a journalism professor at Coastal Carolina University, said the bills could set a tone for further strengthening of open government and the FOI bill in South Carolina.

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S.C. legislators debating changes to strengthen Freedom of Information Act