By Janice Morse
The Cincinnati Enquirer

HAMILTON - A computer company says it will cost more than $21,000 to keep images of Butler County Domestic Relations documents off the Internet while posting case summaries.

Maximus Justice Solutions of North Canton, Ohio, on Wednesday released that estimate for software analysis, reprogramming and related services.

On July 1, two judges ordered Clerk of Courts Cindy Carpenter to remove all domestic relations information from the Internet. They said they were concerned about Social Security numbers, bank account information and other personal data being available.

But Carpenter has argued that there are simpler, cheaper solutions, and that the judges' action interferes with her legal obligation to provide public access to court records.

Butler County Prosecutor Robin Piper is seeking Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro's opinion. Piper wants to know, among other things, whether judges are allowed to "temporarily direct the clerk to ensure public access to the court's records in a manner the clerk considers inappropriate and inconvenient."

Jerome Cook, administrator for Carpenter's office, said there probably would be additional charges associated with separating some records from public access.

On Wednesday, he e-mailed the Domestic Relations Court, saying there had been no planning for such a large expenditure. "Please, turn it back on," he said.

In a written reply, Judge Leslie Spillane stuck to her position.

She said she thought the issue was "resolved" at a July 11 meeting, at which Maximus representative proposed allowing internal users to access detailed information but limiting what's available to Internet users.

"Until we have determined the cost and time line of the program changes necessary to solve the problem, I'm not inclined to restore domestic relations imaged documents to the Internet," she said.

E-mail jmorse@enquirer.com