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I've yet to hear why the nominal 10c/pp charge is too onerous. If this information was truly no cost, it will likely become subject to abuse. I went through p

I've yet to hear why the nominal 10c/pp charge is too onerous. If this information was truly no cost, it will likely become subject to abuse. I went through personal bankruptcy in 2009 and my personal history is available through pacer. I'm not proud of what I went through, and it was my own fault, but I at least take some solace in knowing that in order for scammers to access my information, they will have had to cull through many thousands of other cases at a cost of hundreds of dollars. Perhaps the answer then is to allow PACER access at public libraries without cost - having the access based on a physical location may help reduce the speed with which $criminal_element can build their portfolio.

fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
Ten cents per page returned as search results.
twoodfin 14y ago
Regardless of how the PACER or JSTOR issues shake out, we're pretty clearly headed to a place where public records are all available for free to everyone. I wonder if we should rethink what needs to be a public record in light of legitimate concerns like yours.
thinkcomp 14y ago
"Ten cents doesn't seem like much, but when you consider that an average court case consists of thousands of pages of text in PDF files, those dimes add up rather quickly. When you further consider that in the course of prosecuting one's own court case, one must refer to many, many other cases because of the nature of legal precedent, legal research can suddenly cost thousands of dollars—and that's without even hiring an overpriced lawyer." http://www.aarongreenspan.com/writing/essay.html?id=84 http://www.aarongreenspan.com/writing/essay.html?id=84
eli 14y ago
SSN and similar is already supposed to be redacted in these records, no? If not, well that's something that needs fixing whether it's free or $0.10 per page. If I were a bad guy engaged in identity fraud, I imagine I would already have access to a stolen credit card for use with PACER.
darkarmani 14y ago
> If this information was truly no cost, it will likely become subject to abuse. Right now only the people that are professionals and have the means to abuse you have access. The people that aren't likely to pay for access most likely have less means to abuse you.

fnordfnordfnord 14y ago

Ten cents per page returned as search results.

twoodfin 14y ago

Regardless of how the PACER or JSTOR issues shake out, we're pretty clearly headed to a place where public records are all available for free to everyone. I wonder if we should rethink what needs to be a public record in light of legitimate concerns like yours.

thinkcomp 14y ago

"Ten cents doesn't seem like much, but when you consider that an average court case consists of thousands of pages of text in PDF files, those dimes add up rather quickly. When you further consider that in the course of prosecuting one's own court case, one must refer to many, many other cases because of the nature of legal precedent, legal research can suddenly cost thousands of dollars—and that's without even hiring an overpriced lawyer." http://www.aarongreenspan.com/writing/essay.html?id=84 http://www.aarongreenspan.com/writing/essay.html?id=84

eli 14y ago

SSN and similar is already supposed to be redacted in these records, no? If not, well that's something that needs fixing whether it's free or $0.10 per page. If I were a bad guy engaged in identity fraud, I imagine I would already have access to a stolen credit card for use with PACER.

darkarmani 14y ago

> If this information was truly no cost, it will likely become subject to abuse. Right now only the people that are professionals and have the means to abuse you have access. The people that aren't likely to pay for access most likely have less means to abuse you.