Harold and Alberta Leach endured a painful tragedy 26 years ago when their son, Randy Leach, went missing near Linwood. Sadly, their pain is magnified by law enforcement agencies’ refusal to release records related to the case, which appears to have been shelved long ago despite assertions that there is still an ongoing investigation.

Under Kansas law, criminal investigation records are among 46 types of records that state agencies are not required to make available for public inspection. The entire list of such closed records can be found under Section 45-221 of the Kansas Statutes.

But law enforcement agencies have broad discretion to release the records and in most states, would be compelled to do so. In the Leach case, it seems, giving the records to the family, and thus offering some level of solace, greatly outweighs any risks to the criminal investigation that might arise all these years later.

In 1988, 17-year-old Randy took his parents’ car and drove to a graduation party at a house near what was then Linwood High School. The Leaches never saw their son or their car again. Police investigated the young man’s disappearance and interviewed dozens of witnesses. The house where Randy was last seen later was destroyed in a fire. No one was ever charged in the case. No body was ever found. The car was never recovered. As far as the Leaches knew, no one was ever identified as a suspect in Randy’s disappearance though they are now aware that a man who has since died in prison, was at one time accused in the case.

In 2001, with no leads in the case, the Leaches had their son declared dead.

Today, the Leaches have questions about law enforcement’s investigation. “We have done a lot of stuff to find Randy, and we just want to make sure they did, too,” Alberta Leach recently told the Journal-World.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation and Leavenworth County sheriff’s deputies claim the case remains under investigation. But Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson said that no KBI agents or Leavenworth County deputies have even mentioned Randy Leach since Thompson took office six years ago.

The Journal-World submitted a request to the KBI to review the investigation records. Laura Graham, KBI general counsel wrote back that no matter how old the records are, “they often contain sensitive material that ultimately has been determined irrelevant to a case.”

The Leach case is a sad one. A young man disappeared and police were unable to solve the mystery, leaving open a wound that stings Leach’s family more than a quarter of a century later. It is law enforcement’s right under state law to withhold the records. But from where we sit, doing so continues to unnecessarily punish the family of the victim.

Give the Leaches closure. Release the records.