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The City of Youngsville says no transcript exists from a civil service hearing involving Officer John Davison.
There’s just one problem. Public records obtained by Citizens for a New Louisiana show taxpayers paid $1,587 for transcription services related to that hearing. In this video, Michael Lunsford explains how a routine public records request uncovered an unexpected contradiction, why the transcript matters, and what we’re doing next to get answers.
This is a behind-the-scenes look at how public records investigations actually work—and why transparency often requires much more persistence than most people realize.
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Facts First. Even When They’re Inconvenient.
Some outlets or groups tell you what to think. Others have discovered there’s an easier way to build an audience: tell people exactly what they want to hear. We’ve chosen a harder path.
At Citizens for a New Louisiana, we start with the evidence — public records, financial disclosures, court filings, voting records, audits, and original documents — and follow it wherever it leads. Sometimes the facts confirm what we expected. Sometimes they surprise us. Sometimes they disappoint our friends. Either way, we publish them.
That approach doesn’t always produce the loudest headlines or the easiest fundraising. But over time, it produces something much more valuable: TRUST. If you value independent Louisiana journalism that puts evidence ahead of outrage and principle ahead of tribe, please help us continue the work.
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