Muskegon Sun

Sen. Jim Runestad (R-White Lake) has given his testimony before the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee, offering his support for increased transparency in video recordings from court cases, making such films available to the general public.

Senate Bill 790, which would require video recordings from court cases to be made accessible to the public, has the senator’s complete support, as he stated the importance of transparency.

“Making these recordings available to the public will increase the transparency and availability of court proceedings,” Runestad said, according to MiSenateGOP. “It is important that government operations be as transparent as possible.”

Sen. Jim Runestad | #MiSenateGOP

In this holistic approach to court records accessibility, valuable information from court proceedings would be required to be made available for any citizen who desires it in a timely manner following the hearings.

According to the bill’s documents, “If a court makes a video recording of a public court proceeding, the court shall make the recording available for public access as required by this section.”

The bill would make it impossible for the videos to be edited or truncated, and they must be made available within ten days of a hearing, remaining available for a minimum of 60 days. 

“There is little difference between attending a hearing as a member of the public and watching the recording of the hearing,” Runestad told MiSenateGOP. “In an era where people can watch TV whenever they please, the courts should be allowing justice on demand as well.”

Runestad was able to garner the support of Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack, who has also stated that she is in favor of the bill.

The future of SB 790 has yet to be determined, as the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee will continue to hear further testimony about it. 

The bill was initially introduced for consideration by Runestad on Feb. 11 of this year.