The tragic death of Kyneddi Miller highlights severe failures in public transparency, as critical agency records were heavily redacted despite freedom of information requests. This lack of accessible data obscures accountability for child welfare services, preventing the community from understanding systemic failures. Public officials acknowledge the need for improved transparency, promising to follow the law more strictly while studying other states' practices. However, the primary annual report offered as an alternative contains limited details on specific cases and culpability, leaving significant gaps in public knowledge regarding child fatalities. This situation is vital to open data advocates because it demonstrates how opacity protects failing systems. True open data requires granular, unredacted records that allow journalists and citizens to scrutinize agency performance, ensuring that tragedies are not hidden by bureaucratic withholding of information.

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Published on 2024-05-09