ACLU likely to drop records lawsuit against NJ gov

[July 26, 2011]  TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey says it is likely to drop a lawsuit filed against New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie for records that confirm he met with the head of Fox News last year.

The ACLU filed the lawsuit on Monday on behalf of a reporter for Gawker Entertainment LLC.

It was based on a public records request made by Gawker reporter John Cook, who in May sought any correspondence from Christie's office on the meeting between Christie and Fox News President Roger Ailes.

The governor's office initially refused to confirm any records existed and said that, if they did, they would be exempt from state's open records law based on "executive privilege."

But after the lawsuit was filed Monday, the governor's office released a calendar entry confirming Christie and his wife attended a private dinner on Sept. 11, 2010, in New York.

The ACLU released a statement later Monday saying, "While today's response from the Governor's office will likely resolve the lawsuit, it raises new questions."

[Associated Press; By BETH DeFALCO]

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