Laws in all but a handful of states give the public access to government e-mail. But what if that e-mail was intentionally deleted or routinely purged?
In Hawaii, Gov. Linda Lingle’s office allowed e-mails of her top aide to be purged. In North Carolina, Gov. Mike Easley’s administration allegedly ordered state workers to delete their e-mail correspondence with his office. And in Missouri, lawsuits claim Gov. Matt Blunt’s office deleted e-mails and ordered the destruction of backup e-mail tapes.
