After all, in Skinner's peculiar case, public funds pay for the photos to be freshened every few years and those public funds ought to be replenished by profiteers.
Right?
No, it's not.
Those photos are public property -- public records -- from start to finish.
Rather than charging others extra to see and use them, he ought to be making them available for the costs of copying. Nothing more, nothing less.
The principle at stake is larger than the $2,000 copyright fee that an Orlando firm is balking at paying Skinner. What document in the public domain might be next?
The goal of seasoned public servants such as Skinner is enhancing public access to important public information. That is why he has worked so hard and well on his digitized, computerized records system.
Now he ought to follow through in that spirit and stand clear of restricting how that information may be used.
Collier County arrests 05-23-2012
Editorial Cartoons: May 23, 2012
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Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
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