Sorry, but I don't get why Divorce records should become Public?

[trumad]

I think a divorce between a couple should be private and remain private from prying eyes. That goes for Kerry, Limbaugh, Ryan, etc. It's simply one more reason not to get fucking married in this crazy ass country.

[Trajan]

1. I am ignorant of the facts ..

But didnt Ryan's ex wife talk ? ..

Wasnt SHE who revealed the facts surrounding her own divorce ? ..

If so, she is free to do so ...

[Lisa0825]

4. I heard that she fought making the records public, in order to

protect their children. Don't know if that is true or not, but that is what I heard from a friend.

[Paradise]

11. Yes, the fact that she did not want any of this made public

has been confirmed repeatedly in the press. Beyond that fact, if an individual or a couple
wishes to make it public is one thing but it should not be for the taking by the public. IMO.

[Baltimoreboy]

13. Bear in mind

She used this "incident" to get custody and she was the one who cheated on him and left him. I don't know who to believe.

I think anything that involves some sort of public document is public.

[Paradise]

14. the problem is that a negative reason is 'required',

and, although the couple may be amicable about the divorce, that is not a valid reason, therefore one is customarily 'invented'. you are correct about it being public, however i feel it should be strictly private. (speaking in general, not specifically to the ryans.)

[Baltimoreboy]

15. Many states have "irreconcilable differences"

And require no dirty laundry.

[AP]

17. Like I said below, fight re division of property is only reason dirty ...

laundry would come up in most states.

Had the Ryans been so worried about these details being made public, they would have come up with a private, negotiated settlement. When you turn to the courts because you can't resolve the property division privately, you do so with the understanding that what you say becomes part of the public record.

[Paradise]

19. thanks. didn't know that. :) nt

[beyurslf]

5. No she was against the release just like her ex husband was.

Anyone think that the RW orchestrated this so that they have precedent to get Kerry's records?

[Walt Starr]

2. ALL court records are public documents

Divorce records are usually only sealed in cases with children who may be hurt by the public release of the documents.

Regardless, though, court documents are considered public. You have the right to go down and request any court document you choose. It's a matter of public record.

[kikiek]

3. But energy policy records secret.

[AngryAmish]

6. There is a world of difference b/w Ryan and Kerry

In Kerry's case, his ex-wife does not want them released. She was the one who went loony-toons and drove him away.

[Dardi]

18. Ryan's ex-wife did not want the records released either

No world of difference on that front.

[AngryAmish]

20. Ryan is a pig

Kerry is simply trying to save the Republic.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

21. And Laura Welch ran a stop sign and killed her own boy friend

too bad we can't get all the records on that.

[never cry wolf]

22. The records were not sealed initially

Jack Ryan wanted them sealed from the start, having political aspirations, but Jeri did not want that initially, she fought, successfully, them being sealed. It wasn't until later when Jack got serious about being a candidate that he went back and requested she allow them to be sealed, and this time she agreed.

This guy is phony as a 3 dollar bill. Do you think he quit his lucrative investment banking job to teach out of the goodness of his heart or because it would look good in his campaign ads? Do you think he's gonna go back to teaching now? Fat chance....

Hypocritical puke got what he deserved.

[greatauntoftriplets]

7. The reason the Republican elders of Illinois turned against Ryan...

...has more to do with the fact he lied point blank to them when asked if there was anything in the sealed divorce records that were embarassing. He lost his credibility with them. No more trust.

[AP]

8. Because, as we learned from Great Britain, secrecy in court proceedings

encourages people to tell lies and interferes with defendant's ability to rebut charges.

Divorce today rarely requires cause so there are rarely salacious details in divorce papers. The only reason someone would make allegations of outrageous acts would be to get a greater monetary settlement, and you really wouldn't want people saying things under oath that aren't part of the public record in order to get more money.

If it's a public record, you can always be (within the statute of limitations) charged with perjury if you lied. If the record is sealed, you wouldn't have to worry about some third party looking into your claims under oath. So, public records discourage people from lying.

Having said that, if you take the Ryan divorce, much of their records are STILL redacted. One of the few things that wasn't was that Ryan wanted to have PUBLIC sex with his FAMOUS wife in front of people he didn't know. I think it's pretty obvious that he didn't have an expectation of privacy in THAT bit of information. But apparently a LOT of other things in that file are still private.

Incidentally, a few weeks a ago the US 2nd circuit court of appeals ruled that CT can longer seal records left and right without any cause. Apparently, if you were rich and famous in CT the courts have been willing to seal anything you ask them to seal, from Jack Welch's divorce papers, to a local judge's DUI. I think it's obvious why that isn't fair.

[Lisa0825]

9. Are there witnesses that verify her allegations?

Just curious, because my friend still says "if" he did that, when I argue that if he wanted sex in public, then it should be public record.

[AP]

12. He hasn't denied it.

And she swore to it when she signed the complaint.

[AP]

10. Incidentally, if a couple can decide on how to split money out of court,

there would be no need to even create a public record of outrageious acts in court.

So, when Ryan wouldn't give his wife what she wanted, he was on notice that she was now going to bring this up in court and put it in the public record.

Certainly, you don't want people to get more money than they deserve because they're able to blackmail you with embarrassing facts, but what do you want to bet that Jerri Ryan got fromt the judge pretty much what she asked for originally? She's just as embarrassed that she had to rely on those facts as he is.

[Loonman]

16. They're not supposed to be

But some moron lawyer usually asks them to be released and some moron judge says yes.

[UTUSN]

23. Otoh, Backlash: JK Will Get the Coveted Divorced-Male Vote n/t

[Padraig18]

24. A divorce uses my tax dollars.

It involves 2 adults, and all legal pleadings, except a FEW (juvenile records, adoption records, etc.) are matters of public record.

Act in haste, repent at leisure, but remember--- everyone gets to see the dirty laundry.