Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter was served a lawsuit Tuesday from the Tulane First Amendment Clinic on behalf of the Louisiana Illuminator.

The lawsuit states that more than 300 pages of public records containing Hunter’s emails from April 10-12 were withheld from freelance journalist Natalie McLendon, who filed a public record request on May 13. The Illuminator said in an article that the records were for a future story regarding the city’s budget.

Additionally, the city did not respond to the request within five business days — as required by Louisiana’s Public Records Act — and overcharged for electronic copies of the documents, the lawsuit claims.

According to The Illuminator, City Attorney David Morgan reported there were 1,466 pages to review on May 21. On May 27, Morgan informed McLendon that 1,168 documents were relevant, and did not disclose why the additional pages were withheld at that time.

The American Press reached out to the city for comment on the lawsuit. Public Information Officer Katie Harrington said, “On the advice of legal counsel, the city of Lake Charles is unable to provide comment on pending litigation.”

The case was filed on Sept. 23 in the 14th Judicial District Court for Calcasieu Parish.

The Louisiana Illuminator is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization based out of Baton Rouge.

The Tulane First Amendment Clinic is a learning program at Tulane University Law School that is centered around First Amendment law. Student attorneys represent clients in cases regarding First Amendment freedoms, including freedom of the press.