U. defends refusal to yield worker data

The University of Utah says it had legitimate security concerns when it denied animal-rights activists' request for the names, titles and salaries of some university employees.

But the Utah Primate Freedom Project has appealed to the State Records Committee, saying the project has a right to the information on researchers at the U. Animal Resource Center.

"Our main goal is to find out more information about the studies they are doing, make sure they are following all the laws they should be following," said Katie Patterson, a U. student and member of the animal-rights group. "The U. has been completely unwilling to give us any information at all."

University spokeswoman Coralie Alder said the institution has a duty to protect its employees' safety.

"Animal-rights groups have a history of violence against researchers across the country," Alder said. "Requesting these names and saying they are not violent really doesn't hold up."

She pointed out that Utah Primate Freedom's Web site has already posted the names and addresses of some U. employees. Last October, the group's members protested outside of some U. researchers' homes.

Other animal-rights groups have carried out more dramatic protests in Utah. In 1997, Animal Liberation Front activists burned down a West Jordan McDonald's.

However, Patterson said her group isn't violent, and it's not her intention to "coerce them with fear," but only to access information.

"I am not a violent person," Patterson said. "We don't want to know where they live. We just want to know their names, so if we hear of an atrocity inside the lab, we can find the person and hold them (legally) accountable."

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E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com