A King County Superior Court judge on Friday, May 8 ordered the City of Burien to turn over five withheld records for private judicial review in an ongoing public records lawsuit filed by Charles Schaefer (no relation to South King Media’s Scott Schaefer).
As we previously reported, Schaefer first filed a lawsuit alleging the City of Burien withheld records of then-City Manager Adolfo Bailon’s evaluation in November, 2024. In January, 2025, a King County Superior Court judge denied the city’s request to dismiss it.
Judge Maureen McKee issued this order May 8 after hearing cross motions for summary judgment filed by both Schaefer and the city. The court reserved ruling on those motions until after reviewing the disputed records privately by the judge.
Schaefer said in an email on May 8 that he viewed the decision as a positive development in the case.
“I’m considering this a win because the city objected to being required to prove the records to the court in the first place,” Schaefer told The B-Town Blog.
According to the court order, Schaefer requested records from the City of Burien on Sept. 25, 2023, under Washington’s Public Records Act, seeking “all council and staff feedback on the city manager’s evaluation as well as any records summarizing the results of the evaluation.”
The city produced two documents, including a six-month performance evaluation summary dated Aug. 10, 2023, along with an exemption log listing five withheld documents.
The withheld records included documents titled “Goals Worksheet 1.9.23,” “Confidential City Manager 6 Month Feedback Report 6.2.23,” “City of Burien CM Evaluation Interviews Notes,” and an online survey tied to the evaluation process.
The city cited multiple exemptions under state law, including privacy and executive session protections, as justification for withholding the records.
In her ruling, McKee said several factors supported conducting an in-camera review, a process in which a judge privately examines disputed records before deciding whether they should be released publicly. McKee cited the relatively small number of pages involved, disagreements over the contents of the records and “the strong public interest in disclosure.”
The judge specifically referenced “the public’s interest in the reliability of the 6-month Performance Evaluation Summary dated August 10, 2023.”
The court ordered the City of Burien to provide the five withheld documents to the court by 4 p.m. Monday, May 11.
McKee stated the court expects to issue a ruling on the summary judgment motions by May 20 after completing the review.
As a policy, the City of Burien does not comment on ongoing litigation.
Schaefer said a trial remains tentatively scheduled for June 1, though the judge indicated it may need to move to July.
Resources/Links:
- Schaefer vs City of Burien Case #: 24-2-25581-8 KNT
- Burien resident Charles Schaefer files lawsuit alleging City of Burien withheld records of City Manager’s evaluation
- Superior Court Judge denies City of Burien’s motion to dismiss Charles Schaefer’s public records lawsuit
