The bill requires police to release arrest warrant affidavits that provide detailed information on charges.
Connecticut lawmakers have voted to reverse a state Supreme Court ruling -- which had been criticized by the media -- that said police are only obligated to release basic information about arrests to the public while prosecutions are pending.
The state Senate voted 36 to 0 Wednesday morning in favor of the bill, which the House approved unanimously on Friday.
The bill would again change the state Freedom of Information Act to require police to release arrest warrant affidavits that provide detailed information on charges and disclose certain other records.
The Supreme Court ruled last year that the FOI law only required police to release limited arrest information including names, charges and at least a press release; media organizations, including the Associated Press, had asked the court to rule against limits to release of arrest information.
The bill, which now heads to Governor Dannel Malloy, will not return to the previous standard that all police documents were open to the public. Instead, it approaches a middle ground between that prior language and that outlined within the now overturned Supreme Court ruling.
Nicole Wetsman contributed to this report.
