¶1 The Board of Commissioners of Doña Ana County (the County) refused to promptly disclose certain public records requested by the Las Cruces Sun-News (the Newspaper) pursuant to the Inspection of Public Records Act, NMSA 1978, §§ 14-2-1 to -12 (1999, prior to 2001 amendment) (IPRA). The district court ruled in favor of the Newspaper and ordered the County to pay attorney fees pursuant to Section 14-2-12(D). Three issues are presented: (1) whether it was error to deny the County's motion for protective order, (2) whether the public interests in protecting related criminal and civil proceedings from prejudice outweigh the public interest in the immediate release of information regarding their status, and (3) whether an award of attorney fees was proper under the circumstances. We affirm.
