NOTE: Video and audio evidence of these statements exist and can be provided upon request, due to extenuating circumstances and the resources required to curate the records.
June 10, 2025 –
#1 – I arrived before the meeting start time, but did not receive an escort to the public meeting until I had waited more than 10 minutes.
#2 – I was asked to provide my name prior to being granted access to the public meeting already in progress.
Under KRS 61.840, the law explicitly prohibits public bodies from imposing any condition on a person’s right to attend a public meeting:
“No condition shall be imposed upon the public to attend a meeting. All persons shall be permitted to attend any meeting except as otherwise provided in KRS 61.810 and KRS 61.815.”
Even if the front desk didn’t mention me to KDE by name, they asked my name, I said it. They also saw me and were aware I was down here. I believe this played a role in the length of time I was forced to wait to gain entry to the public meeting already in progress.
In addition to improperly being asked to provide my name, my right to record and document these meetings was progressively and repeatedly violated. These personal sanctions were also arbitrarily applied to everyone in attendance.
#3 – Forced to quit livestreaming
MR. HOLLAN: I apologize, but I do have one other preliminary matter really quick. If — I’m not sure if she’s livestreaming, but because we have sequestered witnesses, that could be an issue that she would be livestreaming the hearing. Is it a livestream?
MS. ADELMANN: At the moment it is. I’ve been doing a little bit of both, but I can — if that’s a concern during — can you let me know when the sequestered witnesses are in?
MR. HOLLAN: They’re all, yeah, currently.
MS. ADELMANN: Oh, like you’re saying they’re watching right now?
MR. HOLLAN: Right.
MS. ADELMANN: All right. I will record. Thank you for letting me know. It’s done.
MR. HOLLAN: Are we ready to resume?
The hearing officer never actually agrees with EPSB Attorney claims or rules on his request, but out of respect for Dr. Johnson and not wanting to create any more “excuses” for the attorneys to delay or distract from her hearing, I comply and end my livestream.
#4 – Forced to quit all recordings.
On page 29 of the transcript, when I was out of the room, EPSB attorneys asked to have me no longer be allowed to record due to false allegations that I was intimidating a witness by providing misleading evidence to the hearing officer.
June 11, 2025
8:18 AM – I continue to look for someone to provide guidance or intervene. I end up speaking with Sara Bentley (KY Staff Atty), Amye Bensenhaver (Open Records “guru”), the KRS statutes themselves and Chat GPT. The EPSB meeting is a public meeting, according to Sarah, “unless the educator requests it not to be,” (which this defendant educator did not, and in fact, very much so wanted it to be recorded and public). In such a case, they would be required to go into a closed session, which I also would not be able to sit in on, and therefore, not record. This did not happen. As a member of the public, and potentially even considered “media,” I am reassured by these sources that being present is equivalent to being able to record, but, after considerable pressure from the team of EPSB attorneys, I was ultimately told I could not.
I suspected I knew the reasons why I was being told this lie, so I exercised my right to record, despite the Hearing Officers instructions, with the intention of causing minimal disruption and honoring the concerns the hearing officer had expressed. As the ability to exercise my rights continued to deteriorate, I was forced to resort to more clandestine methods and it became more difficult, if not impossible, to conform to the hearing officers’ concerns.
5:03 PM – I hand the first complaint to the hearing officer. He says he will put it in his folder and take a look when he gets back to Louisville. (Video) (Original complaint) (Transcribed complaint)
June 12, 2025
sI handed a printout with information about Amye Bensenhaver and her response to the hearing officer and ask him to add it to the previous complaint.
June 24, 2025
I enter the building around
I provide the 2nd complaint letter to the hearing officer at the end of the day as everyone is leaving the building.