(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it filed a lawsuit in Vermont to gain access to hundreds of thousands of documents concerning the administration of former Vermont Governor Howard Dean. In addition to Dean, the lawsuit names the State of Vermont, the Vermont Secretary of State, and Vermont’s State Archivist as defendants. Judicial Watch had sought and was repeatedly denied access to Governor Dean’s records from his tenure as governor. Governor Dean has cited his presidential run as the basis for denying the public access to these government records, reportedly telling Vermont Public Radio, “Well, there are future political considerations. We didn’t want anything embarrassing appearing in the papers at a critical time in any future endeavor.” Judicial Watch uncovered, through a public records request, that, in negotiating the agreement to seal the records, lawyers for Dean and Vermont state officials repeatedly discussed Dean’s presidential campaign as a basis for keeping the records secret.

In its lawsuit, filed this afternoon in Vermont state court in Montpelier, Judicial Watch asks the state court to provide it, the media, and the public access to upwards of 400,000 records being withheld from public scrutiny pursuant to an unprecedented agreement between Dean and the State of Vermont. The records in dispute would otherwise not be made public for 10 years. Dean had initially sought to keep these records sealed for 24 years. Vermont law provides for expedited court consideration of this lawsuit.

(Judicial Watch has also filed two lawsuits to gain access to the records of Vice President Cheney’s Energy Task Force. Dean had criticized Vice President Cheney for withholding these records from public scrutiny.)

“It is unlawful for Governor Dean to deny the public access to his gubernatorial records because of ‘future political considerations.’ We hope the Vermont courts will agree that it is in the public interest that Dean and the State of Vermont immediately unseal these important records,” stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.

To view a copy of the complaint click here (Adobe pdf) or here (text format).