From The Cincinnati Enquirer The Enquirer on Tuesday sued the State Fire Marshal for withholding records in its investigation into the death of a Hamilton firefighter.
In refusing to release the fire marshal's initial report, Assistant Ohio Attorney General Hilary Damaser said in an email investigators considered the fire a non-routine criminal matter "from their very first approach."
The Enquirer, in its lawsuit, called this revelation concerning. The fire has since been ruled arson.
"An investigator who commences the investigation with his mind already made up is derelict in his duty," The Enquirer wrote. "The investigators' apparent prejudices make the need for public access to the SFM Report, and resulting scrutiny, all the more pressing."
Firefighter Patrick Wolterman died Dec. 28 rushing into a home he believed might have been occupied.