A Florida judge has ruled that the Florida Department of Transportation must release public records regarding the tragic pedestrian bridge collapse at Florida International University.
Leon County state court Judge Kevin Carroll ruled Tuesday that the documents are public records under Florida law and cannot be withheld. The state agency had argued that the documents couldn't be made public due to an ongoing federal investigation into the March 15 collapse.
The Miami Herald sued the department of transportation after the agency refused to release the documents, citing orders from the National Transportation Safety Board.
Both agencies say the NTSB told the state agency not to release records dating from Feb. 19.
The state agency says it will review the judge's order. A NTSB report released earlier this month showed large cracks in the bridge just one to two days before it collapsed.
The bridge suddenly collapsed on March 15 as a work crew was carrying out the engineer's orders to re-tighten rods that ran through a diagonal concrete truss — the same area that was cracking in the newly released photos.