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Re: Who Decides



Two issues effecting this Ohio Historical Society case that many may not be
aware of and should.  It has gone apparently unreported recently, but know to
many in the Ohio archive world, that when the state microfilmed the records they
did not have a "Certificate of Authority" document as part of the preceeding
documents on the microfilm records, in his case the Prison Records.  This is a
violation of their own policy, which also mirror ANSI standards.

Second, the records which were destroyed were done illegally.  The two gentelman
broke the law.  Although this issue was skirted somewhat, one could probably
figure it out.  They destroyed public records which were microfilmed improperly,
then disposed of illegally.

The issue isn't whether they microfilmed records then destroyed the originals.
We do that all of the time as archivists.  However, how they went about
disposing records that were "microfilmed", but not certified by the microfilmer
or staff, is illegal according to Ohio statutes, policy and procedures.

The OHS Local government records microfilm guidelines states:

"Prepare records for filming.
                       Arrange documents in proper order.
                       Number pages.
                       Prepare eye-legible identification targets to be filmed
at the beginning
                       of each roll.
                       Prepare a certificate of authenticity to be filmed at the
beginning of
                       each roll.
                       This type of preparation will enable to microfilm staff
to check for
                       errors of omission in the filming process, and it will
ensure that
                       information can be readily retrieved from the completed
microform."

If the microfilmed information is not authenticated, then it will not be
admissible in court, as has been the practice  There are also other records
series involved  that are part of this case and have not been reported.  This is
only part of what is really going on at the OHS and its mismanagement is finally
being noticed.

AJ Du Fresne, Pres.
The Archive Company
Findlay  OH

"Kurilecz, Peter" wrote:

> The recent article in the Toledo Blade concerning the destruction of records
> by the OHS was to say the least fascinating. Richard Cox is correct when he
> states that "...every newspaper article like this only tells part of the
> story..." very rarely does a newspaper fully report both sides of a story.
> Now putting that aside let me explore/comment/question some of the issues as
> I see them.
>
> 1. Private Organization
> Why is a private organization responsible for the maintenance and care of
> the state government's records? Ohio is not alone in having this
> arrangement. (Unfortunately the supporting information is not readily at
> hand). Is there a contractual arrangement between the state and the OHS? How
> does the state monitor (if at all) the society's activities? How binding is
> the retention schedule on the society?
>
> 2. State records retention schedule?
> How detailed are Ohio's records retention schedules? If a record is
> considered permanent does  the schedule state that it must be preserved in
> its original state or that it can be transferred to another medium? Who
> develops the retention schedules and what process is involved in reviewing
> and approving the draft schedules? What process is in place that allows for
> the modification of a schedule?
>
> 3. Records destruction
> Richard Cox commented that "the public needs to understand that archivists
> are destroyers as well as preservers.." and which I thoroughly agree with.
> Not every blessed piece of paper, artifact, etc. needs to be saved. At home
> I try to practice what I preach, periodically I review the information I
> maintain at home and throw out what is not needed or necessary. I do have a
> hard time convincing  "she who must be obeyed" that we need not save every
> scrap that documents our children's existence unfortunately my message is
> blowin in the wind.
>
> In deciding to microfilm the records did the OHS determine that it would be
> done to free up space or to preserve delicate, fragile documents? If I
> remember correctly the answer is to free up space. That is a valid reason,
> the records are still preserved but space is now available for more
> material. However heavy use by researchers can cause damage to materials.
> Microfilming will help preserve the materials by allowing researchers to
> access the data without actually handling the original materials.  Which is
> more important -- the data or the medium?
>
> 4. Public Relations
> This I think is the biggest problem. The OHS should not have just thrown the
> materials into a dumpster, rather they should have been shredded or at the
> least make sure that the dumpster has a lock on it.
>
> Oh well I've rambled long enough, cabin fever will do that to you. Must run
> and prepare for the next storm
>
> Peter A. Kurilecz CRM, CA
> Woodside Summit Group, Inc
> Richmond, Virginia
> Tel: 804-744-1247 extension 23
> Fax: 804-744-4947
> mailto:peter.kurilecz@woodsidesummitgroup.com
>
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A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

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Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
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Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>