West Virginia officials can keep e-mail secret.

• Position: OPEN RECORDS - Brief article

At a time when many state governments and public officials are opting for increased transparency, West Virginia's Supreme Court has decided the state's officials and employees can keep their personal e-mails private.

The court recently ruled 4 to 1 that none of the 13 e-mail messages between former Chief Justice Elliott E. Maynard of the Supreme Court and the chief executive of Massey Energy, Don L. Blankenship, are public records, the Associated Press (AP) reported.

The AP sued to gain access to the e-mails in 2008, when Massey had cases pending before the court. Judge Duke Bloom of Kanawha County Circuit...