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It’s now up to a visiting judge to determine if a former Champaign County court reporter will be held in contempt related to a battle over payment and the withholding of public records.
The county is seeking to force former employee Jeanine Fansler to turn over all notes and recordings of court proceedings in her possession and impose a criminal punishment on her for failing to complete transcripts in a timely manner. Both sides submitted closing arguments this week.
The claim is that when her employment with the county ended July 24, 2013, Fansler took all recordings and notes with her instead of leaving them with the court for future use. When the court needed a recording she had in her possession transcribed after that date, they contacted her to do the transcription as an independent contractor.
But the parties disagreed about the fee Fansler should be paid for this transcription work, so she refused to turn over the transcripts or recordings.
“She removed all of these (SD cards), so if someone requests a transcript we don’t have any way to make those,” said Champaign County Prosecutor Kevin Talebi, who is representing the plaintiff, Champaign Common Pleas Court, in the case. “She won’t prepare the transcripts and (the court) is unable to have anyone else prepare them.”
Fansler’s lawyer, J.C. Ratliff, could not be reached for comment Friday.
Fansler withheld the transcripts because she wasn’t getting paid her requested fee, according to the closing statement filed by her lawyer Dec. 10. She claims the SD cards on which court recordings are stored are her personal property because she paid for them out-of-pocket.
Fansler also contends that there is no policy in place that requires the recordings to be left with the court. But the county says that is common practice and it has never had a problem like this occur before.
“What would normally take place is the court retains possession of those SD cards,” Talebi said. It’s preferable to have the court reporter who makes the notes do the transcription, he said, because they are done in shorthand symbols. But another court reporter could make a transcript off of Fansler’s recording if needed.
Instead, the recordings were essentially held hostage, Talebi said, causing delays in justice for defendants and potential fines for the county for not having public records readily available.
One criminal appeal had to be delayed twice in January and February because the incarcerated and indigent individual couldn’t get a copy of a transcript to file his brief, according to court documents.
Fansel was demanding she be paid $8 per page up front for any transcription, while the court had implemented a policy that transcription would cost $4 per page, to be billed after the work was complete.
In the delayed case, the Second District Court of Appeals implored the county court to issue an order to produce the transcript and consider invoking its contempt powers if it wasn’t done.
Since the court filed its complaint, all outstanding transcript work has been turned over, according to both parties. However, the court is still attempting to get the recordings in order to avoid this issue in the future.
The court has authorized payment to Fansel for her work, but she has not picked up the checks from the Champaign County Auditor’s office and refuses to sign a required state retirement waiver stating she is an independent contractor, Talebi said.
Fansel’s defense says she has complied and turned over the requested transcripts. Her attorney also has tried to get the case dismissed on the grounds that the court and Judge Nick Selvaggio cannot legally sue.
Talebi said the case is a complaint on behalf of the court and not a formal lawsuit.
Visiting Judge James Brogan, who replaced Judge Timothy Campbell after Fansel’s defense claimed a conflict of interest, will decide whether to hold Fansel in civil contempt, compelling her to turn over all her recordings; and whether to impose a punishment for criminal contempt for the delays her actions caused.
The punishment could include a fine and/or jail time, Talebi said.
There is no word on when Brogan will make his decision.
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