On Feb. 5, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry sued Andrea Gallo, a reporter for The Advocate, in response to a public records request Gallo filed.

Gallo’s request sought files from the Attorney General’s office relating to the handling of sexual harassment complaints about Pat Magee, the head of the AG’s criminal division. Magee was placed on unpaid administrative leave on Dec. 14, 2020 — the same day Gallo first filed a request for records — and returned to work on Jan. 19, 2021.

The Advocate has expressed its support for Gallo and called on readers to file public records requests of their own. The details of this case may seem legal and technical in nature, but Landry’s lawsuit represents an escalated attack on the press that we should all be concerned about.

But before we get into the significance of the lawsuit: what even is a public records request?

Journalists, businesses, lawyers and private citizens use public records requests to obtain information from government agencies and officials. Different states have different public records request laws, giving citizens varying amounts of access to the workings of government in that state.

In Louisiana, the public is entitled to view a wide range of documents, including things like emails and text exchanges between public officials.

For many journalists, filing public records requests is a common workplace occurrence. Gallo said in an interview with NPR that she has filed hundreds in her time as journalist, and that these requests are “vital” to her job.

Unfortunately, it’s also common for government officials and agencies to stall on public records requests, or heavily redact information. What’s thoroughly uncommon is a government official suing a reporter for making a request.

So why was Gallo sued? Landry’s lawsuit asks the judge to deny Gallo’s request and seal the files in question. The AG’s office said it’s trying to protect the privacy of witnesses, employees and potential whistleblowers.

“We don’t want to silence anyone. This is a legal question that we need to have a court make a legal decision on,” Press Secretary Cory Dennis said in a recent interview on NPR’s 1A program, when asked if the attorney general was acting in retaliation.

Despite the explanation about protecting whistleblowers, the lawsuit goes even further than that: Landry’s lawsuit seeks to charge Gallo with all legal fees related to the proceedings. It is this detail that provides a clue into the intent of the lawsuit.

Gallo is fortunate to be backed by her employer, the largest newspaper in the state. She has access to the necessary legal resources. But imagine if a reporter from smaller, online publication was sued. Imagine if a Reveille employee was sued and threatened with the possibility of having to pay thousands in legal fees.

Even the threat of legal action alone might be enough to discourage a person from inquiring into the behavior of public officials, from seeking information about their own government. This is a disturbing potential consequence of the attorney general’s lawsuit.

Journalism is a fundamental aspect of our democratic system. Transparency in government allows Louisiana voters to make more informed decisions about the people they elect to public office. As Gallo succinctly put it, “We would like to know more about how our tax dollars are being used and how our public officials are behaving in office.”

The inconsistent explanations and legal jargon from the attorney general’s office distract from ­­the reality of the situation. “It feels like I have filed a public records request with a government official and been retaliated against by being the subject of a lawsuit,” Gallo told NPR.

To me, that’s exactly what it seems like. This lawsuit is a warning to other journalists, telling them not to inquire into the affairs of a public official.

But it’s not the attorney general’s job to attack journalists. Gallo, an LSU alumna who was once editor-in-chief of The Reveille (shoutout), should feel empowered and not deterred by this lawsuit.

Landry may be a gubernatorial candidate in 2023, and though that election is a few years away, Louisiana voters should consider this case when deciding whether to give Landry even more power in the state government.

Landry should drop this lawsuit, release the records and offer an honest and transparent explanation as to what transpired. We’ll see if that happens.

Sal Beeby is a 21-year-old political science junior from Oakland, CA.