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| Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony | |
As part of the FOI Summit Celebration, the second class of inductees to the Florida Freedom of Information Hall of Fame were honored. Six new inductees were honored and join 11 members of the inaugural class honored in 1997 as part of The Brechner Center's 20th anniversary celebration. All photos (c) Ray Carson/Brechner Center |
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The first inductee was the late James C. “Jimmy” Adkins Jr.,the 58th Justice of the Florida Supreme Court, where he served from 1969 until 1987. Adkins earned the nickname “Justice Sunshine” for his interpretations of Florida’s fledgling Open Meetings Law in favor of the public. John Newton accepted the award in honor of Adkins. |
Hall of Fame inductee Marion Brechner cheers on the crowd as she receives a standing ovation from the more than 150 attendees present at the luncheon.
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Dean Emeritus Ralph Lowenstein (left), Pete Weitzel (second from left), and Brechner Center Executive Director Sandra Chance (right), proudly induct Marion Brechner (second from right) into the Florida Freedom of Information Hall of Fame. |
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Florence Snyder Rivas (second from right), a former colleague of inductee Talbot "Sandy" D'Alemberte, accepted the award on D'Alemberte's behalf. D'Alemberte is president emeritus of the Florida State University and former president of the American Bar Association. As a legislator, D’Alemberte was instrumental in making significant reforms to Florida’s Sunshine and Public Records laws. |
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IThe late H.G. "Buddy" Davis was a famed longtime journalism professor at the University of Florida, a Pulitzer-Prize winning editorialist, and a drafter of Florida's Open Meetings Law. His wife, Margie Davis, accepted the award in honor of her husband. |
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Inductee Louis Michael "Skip" Perez has been part of the Lakeland Ledger team for more than three decades. Perez represents The New York Times Company in the Inter Americas Press Association, where he is one of only two representatives of the United States on the Freedom of the Press Committee.
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Gregg D. Thomas
has served as a media attorney for the past 30 years and is a partner with the law firm Thomas & LoCicero, Tampa. A graduate of the University of Florida’s law school, Thomas was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1976. Return to top |
John Newton was a close friend and former law clerk of Justice Adkins, who was on the Florida Supreme Court when challenges to the 1967 open meetings law first came before the Court. |
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Inductee Gregg D. Thomas (second from right) has argued media matters — including reporter subpoenas, access to judicial proceedings, public records, open meetings, and defamation cases — in federal and state courts throughout Florida. He achieved positive results in three major Florida Supreme Court cases involving reporter subpoenas, access to public records, and misappropriation of likeness.
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Louis Michael "Skip" Perez (second from right) has consistently fought for the right to government information, and the resulting stories have earned The Ledger numerous awards.
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Inductee Skip Perez was also on the board of the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors for several years, during a time when the organization became very active in FOI issues. Perez served as FSNE president from 1981to 1982. |
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Margie Davis (front center), the wife of the late H.G. "Buddy" Davis poses with 1997 Hall of Fame Inductees Ralph Lowenstein (left) and Pete Weitzel (center), and The Brechner Center Executive Director Sandra Chance (right).
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Inductee Marion Brechner embraces Brechner Center Executive Director Sandra Chance during the induction ceremony. Marion Brechner created the Joseph L. and Marion B. Brechner graduate assistantship in 1996 because she saw the importance of extending understanding of Florida’s Sunshine laws and other freedom of information issues to the then-new medium of the Internet and the World Wide Web. |
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