From ColoradoWatchdog.org:  Colorado Judicial Branch, which has been the focus of a Watchdog.org series examining its lack of transparency, was picked as a finalist for the Society of Professional Journalists “Black Hole Award.”

The winner of the dubious honor was the Virgin Islands, cited for top government officials who refuse to abide by records laws.

“What’s happening in the U.S. Virgin Islands is unacceptable,” Jonathan Anderson, chair of SPJ’s Freedom of Information Committee, said in a news release.

Colorado Judicial was named as finalist for the award given to governments that interfere the public’s right to know.

This is the second time a top journalism organization named the state courts a finalists for an award given to organizations that are not transparent.

Last year, Investigative Reporters and Editors named the courts as a finalist for the Golden Padlock Award, a recognition given to government agencies that prevent access to records and are not transparent.

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