JEFFERSON CITY A judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit seeking access to thousands of e-mails from the governor's office but also gave the plaintiff time to amend his case.
Cole County Circuit Court Judge Richard Callahan ruled that the plaintiff, former Missouri Highway Patrol Chief Mel Fisher, did not have standing to bring the suit.
Fisher's attorney called the ruling a procedural matter and said it was "not substantive."
A spokeswoman for Gov. Matt Blunt applauded the decision but reiterated the governor's belief that he would win the suit should it continue.
Fisher is heading an independent investigative team appointed by Attorney General Jay Nixon to examine how the governor's office handles e-mail records. He sued the governor's office in May after officials told him it would cost more than $500,000 to comply with a wide-ranging records request.
In the suit, Fisher is seeking access to the records — which may number in the hundreds of thousands — free of charge.
The two sides argued the case before Callahan on Thursday.
In the ruling Friday, the court grants Fisher 10 days to file a new petition establishing his right to sue or to allow the attorney general himself to become involved. One possibility would be for Nixon to appoint Fisher as a special assistant attorney general.
Chet Pleban, Fisher's attorney, acknowledged that this was an option for continuing the case but said he had not yet studied the issue in depth.
The attorney general's office responded to the ruling by saying it was committed to making open records available.
"We are reviewing the order and will make sure the independent investigative team has all the legal tools needed to accomplish this important work," spokesman Scott Holste said in the statement.
Jessica Robinson, a spokeswoman for Blunt, said the lawsuit accuses the governor of actions that didn't occur and would not violate the law if they did.
"Should Jay Nixon or his political operatives consider a similar lawsuit, we stand ready to make all of these arguments for yet another dismissal," she said.
Three media outlets, including The Kansas City Star, have sought to join the suit, but Callahan did not rule on that motion Friday.
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