Great Lakes Wire

FOIA Request to Baraga County Sheriff's Office regarding 2023 arrest records on September 24, 2025.

The Great Lakes Wire, a media organization dedicated to providing comprehensive and accurate news coverage on local governmental affairs, has submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Baraga County Sheriff's Office. The request seeks access to all arrest records from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023. The requested data points include the arrestee's name, sex, race, age, date of birth, citizenship status, booking ID, date of arrest, booking photo, names of arresting officers, type of crime committed, location of the crime, and date of the crime.

This request is made under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act § 15.231 et seq., with a preference for receiving the information in electronic format. As part of their professional responsibilities in gathering and reporting news to the public and holding public institutions accountable for transparency purposes, Great Lakes Wire believes they are eligible for a fee waiver as a media professional.

Additionally, this request is supported by The Coalition Opposing Governmental Secrecy—a non-profit organization that assists media companies and public advocacy groups in investigating state and federal governmental agencies through Freedom of Information and Sunshine Laws. More information about this coalition can be found on their website: https://stopsecrecy.org/about/.

Our team will continue to keep you updated as we gather and report news related to this request and other matters of public interest. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or need further clarification regarding this matter.