The Michigan Supreme Court won't take an appeal in a dispute over whether e-mail is public if written on a school computer.
The state appeals court has ruled that e-mail written on Howell computers by members of the teachers' union is not public. The Supreme Court refused to take the case in a 4-3 decision released Thursday. Conservative justices wanted to hear it.
A lawsuit was filed after the Howell school district received a request for e-mail under the Freedom of Information Act. In 2007, a Livingston County judge ruled in favor of openness, but the appeals court later said no.
The Mackinac Center Legal Foundation is a frequent critic of unions and says it hopes the Supreme Court will reconsider its decision when conservatives are back in the majority in January.