Robert Gavin reports in The Albany Times-Union that state court officials are not releasing information about how just-elected state Supreme Court Justice Christina Ryba was rehired as an attorney for Presiding Justice Karen Peters, just after being fired from that job on the eve of election day. Shawn Kerby, an assistant deputy counsel who handles Freedom of Information Law requests, denied a Times Union ask for information about issue. "Please be advised that we have identified a five-page document and six pages of email records related to your broad request," Kerby said in a Dec. 22 email. "The records are exempt from FOIL as disclosure constitutes an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, entails non-final, non-factual interagency materials and implicates statutory confidentiality protections." Nine days after being fired, Ryba was offered a similar position with Supreme Court Justice Michael Coccoma. On Jan. 1, the Democrat begins a 14-year term as a judge in the seven-county 3rd Judicial District, after defeating Republican Colonie Town Justice Norman Massry. Read the full story in the Times-Union.