The director of the Government Records Office ruled Sept. 23, 2025, that the Utah Transit Authority must disclose body‑camera and vehicle video, images and audio from a paratransit crash to KSL investigative reporter Courtney Johns and counsel, but with passenger faces redacted and the bus driver’s face left unblurred; the director also declined to require voice modulation for released audio.

The decision balances privacy interests in traumatic images against the public’s right to know, while allowing reporters and counsel controlled access to review the footage and narrow the exact clips needed for reporting.

Cody Winchester, associate general counsel for Bonneville International, the parent company of KSL, opened by stressing public‑records principles: “A record is public unless otherwise expressly provided by statute,” he said, and argued that video captured in public transit is presumptively accessible and that KSL would follow journalistic and FCC standards. Winchester and reporter Courtney Johns said they sought limited portions of seven video files—specifically videos numbered 1, 2, 6 and 7 and a single image (ending in 183)—and asked that the footage not be overly pixelated so reporters could assess what occurred.

UTA, represented by Assistant Attorney General Tim Merrill and records officer Alex Paugh, said it had reclassified and was prepared to release many items immediately: UTA designated 37 audio clips as public, 55 images with 39 released unblurred and 16 to be pixelated, and seven videos to be released with redaction. Merrill said UTA would blur bystanders’ and passengers’ faces, alter pitch for voices originally proposed, and remove security camera identification numbers to avoid potential security risks; he told the director, “UTA is prepared to release them immediately.”

Director Pearson initially signaled concern that the agency’s reclassification came late in the process and suggested an in‑camera review so counsel and the reporter could view the video before further litigation. Both sides consented: UTA agreed to counsel’s in‑camera review via a secure link, and KSL said it would identify the precise segments it sought after review. KSL requested that reporter Johns, not only counsel, be permitted to view the clips; UTA raised no objection to a limited reporter viewing without providing copies.

In balancing privacy under the GRAMA provision cited by UTA, the director said passenger faces shown during ejection or other graphic moments presented a “clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” and ordered that any passenger faces in the disclosed footage be blurred. The director found a lesser privacy interest for the driver and declined to require the proposed voice‑modulation: voices may be released unaltered. The director also rejected UTA’s proposed blanket clipping at the moment of impact, instead ordering disclosure of the entire relevant video segments that document the accident, subject to the facial redactions and removal of camera identification numbers.

The parties agreed on logistics: UTA will provide a secure link for counsel and reporter review of the reclassified materials, and counsel for KSL will identify the precise segments and timestamps they want to obtain. The director encouraged the parties to use the limited review to avoid further litigation. Immediate releases of audio and many images were offered by UTA during the hearing; the parties planned follow‑up to complete redactions and secure transfer of files.

Ending: The director’s partial grant leaves redaction responsibilities to UTA (faces blurred, camera IDs removed); either party may seek further review as allowed by GRAMA and the written order that will follow the hearing.