TSM uncovered over 60 PDFs pre‑dated to December 31 — weeks ahead of when they were actually created — after months of delays, misdirection, and a closed FOIA.
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True Signal Media has uncovered a troubling pattern inside an Illinois public agency’s FOIA office — one that raises serious questions about transparency, record‑keeping, and the integrity of official disclosures.
TSM received two batches of documents from the agency: one on December 17 and another on December 30. But when we examined the files’ metadata, the story shifted. More than 60 PDFs showed file creation timestamps of 1:42 AM and 2:42 AM on December 31, 2025.
Not the dates the agency claimed. Not the dates the documents were sent. Not even dates that align with the FOIA officer’s own correspondence.
Instead, the metadata shows that a large portion of the production was not created on the dates the agency claimed, but was instead timestamped weeks in advance of the true creation time and date. More than 60 PDFs carry those late‑night December 31 timestamps — a suspiciously tidy moment to close out the year and improve internal performance metrics. These timestamps appear long after the FOIA officer represented the records as already existing, and long after the dates on which the documents were supposedly produced.
And the timing fits a broader pattern.
For nearly two months, the FOIA officer requested four to six extensions per FOIA, far beyond the single 10‑day extension allowed under Illinois law. On one request, after TSM finally said no more extensions, the FOIA officer produced records the very next day — a turnaround that raises questions about whether the delays were ever legitimate.
Throughout this period, TSM repeatedly narrowed its requests to reduce the workload and clarify exactly which records were needed. Instead of honoring those clarifications, the FOIA officer repeatedly claimed TSM had expanded the requests. In several cases, he even changed the FOIA tracking numbers mid‑stream, making narrowed requests appear as brand‑new filings — a move that conveniently resets the clock and obscures the extension count.
This didn’t happen once. It happened across three separate FOIAs.
And on a fourth FOIA, the pattern escalated. The FOIA officer claimed there were over 300,000 responsive records and labeled the request “unduly burdensome.” But instead of following the law — which requires agencies to work with the requester to narrow the scope — he simply closed the FOIA outright, denying TSM any opportunity to refine or limit the request.
To produce timestamps like the December 31 batch, the FOIA officer would have needed to either:
- use software capable of altering file metadata, or
- manually change the system clock before exporting or saving the PDFs.
Both scenarios raise red flags under Illinois FOIA, which requires agencies to provide existing records — not create new ones or manipulate timestamps to make them appear older than they are.
TSM has formally filed a complaint with the Illinois Public Access Counselor (PAC) regarding these discrepancies and the potential manipulation of records. We are currently awaiting the PAC’s review and response.
This is the kind of quiet administrative behavior that rarely makes headlines but shapes the public’s access to truth. And it’s exactly why we watch the timestamps as closely as the text.