Multiple lawsuits have been filed against the Richmond School Board for refusing to release the findings of an external investigation into the June 6 mass shooting in Monroe Park after the Huguenot High School graduation ceremony.

The local daily newspaper announced it filed a lawsuit last Friday in Richmond Circuit Court after a Freedom of Information Act request for the report was denied by the board. The 32-page report was conducted by the Sands Anderson law firm.

The next day, Joshua Stanfield, executive director of Activate Virginia, an all-volunteer network of researchers and activists who uncover corruption in Virginia, announced his intention to also file a petition for mandamus and declaratory relief this week in Richmond Circuit Court, with the request of a hearing being set by the court within seven days of its filing.

The School Board decided to not share the findings presented by Sands Anderson after reviewing it in closed session meetings.

Board members have cited attorney-client privilege as the reason for not releasing the report, and have repeatedly deferred to their legal counsel when discussing its potential release.

The daily publication and Mr. Stanfield both challenged this exemption in their filings, arguing that it and Virginia law doesn’t apply to the investigation and report as it was approved and commissioned.

“School Board’s own parameters for the Sands Anderson investigation, as delineated in Superintendent Kamras’ October 2, 2023 presentation to Respondent School Board, do not include the provision of legal advice or legal counsel,” Mr. Stanfield’s petition reads. “Respondents therefore illegally exercised the exemption in (Virginia Code) as it pertains to ‘written advice of legal counsel’.”

Sands Anderson’s investigation was authorized in August, following a Richmond Public

Schools investigation into the shooting, which led to the killing of Huguenot High graduate Shawn D. Jackson and his stepfather, Renzo R. Smith.

School Board members found the RPS report, which wasn’t published due to student privacy laws, insufficient for addressing lingering questions about the shooting and how it could have been prevented. It then hired Sands Anderson to investigate the incident and RPS operations at the time.

A motion by School Board member and 4th District Representative Jonathan Young to release the third-party investigation failed on a 6-2 vote during the board’s Nov. 20 meeting, with 6th District Representative Shonda Harris-Muhammed abstaining.

Both the local daily and Mr. Stanfield filed their FOIA requests the day following that meeting and vote. WTVR and WRIC television stations also announced lawsuits following FOIA requests for the report.

The School Board did not provide a comment on the lawsuits before the Free Press deadline.